Finding His Wings
by purewriting
Summary: Lucy was an ordinary girl. She worked at a book store with her best friend Levy. Until the day she was attacked by a despicable man who calls himself 'Salamander'. That night she's rescued by a half-dragon named Natsu who requests she helps him 'unlock his heart' to get his wings. It starts out all business but will it grow into something much more?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Little late, but a fanfic for NaLu week. Enjoy! :3**

...

It was an ordinary day. But as most of these stories go, ordinary days don't stay ordinary. Lucy sighed and leaned against the counter of the bookstore. It was empty and quite as usual and what made her boredom worse was her partner and best friend was out sick with a really bad stomach flu after eating some bad sushi. The sun was starting to go down so it was about time to close shop. Lucy took her name tag off and stored it in the drawer and locked it then locked down the shop for the night.

"'Celestial & Script Magic Tomes'." a smug sounding voice read, "Interesting name."

Lucy whipped around to see a man with a smug grin and a small tattoo over his left eye. Lucy raised an eyebrow at the strange man.

"If you're interested in looking at our selection, you'll have to wait until tomorrow the shop's closed." Lucy stated.

"Im sure you can...make an exception." He grinned dangerously, moving closer to Lucy, "How 'bout you come on a date with me and let your hair down."

Lucy swatted his hand away as it snakes towards her hair that was pulled back neatly in a ponytail. She tried to move but her feet were glued to the pavement. Her eyes drifted to one of the many rings on his finger. One pulsed with a dull pink light. A charm ring.

It was an illegal magic, forbidden by the Magic Council. And this guy was using it to make her stay still so he could...no. She couldn't think like that. Lucy fought hard against the spell and reached for the ring of gold and silver keys on her belt, but the charm wizard spotted her movement and snatched the key ring before she could reach it.

"Ah. So that's where the 'Celestal' bit of the name came from. You're a Celestial Wizard." He mocked, thumbing through the keys, "Useless to a flame wizard like me."

He tossed the key ring over his shoulder and towards the river by the store front. All Lucy could do was watch in horror as her precious keys sailed through the air towards the river. But then a hand reached up and plucked the keys from the air and looked at them with mild interest.

"You say you're a wizard?" The man who caught Lucy's keys asked, slightly aggravated, "Cause all I see is a wanna-be-predator."

The tattoo guy seemed to not take kindly to that. He turned away from Lucy and faced the shadowy man.

"Do you have any idea who I am?" he growled.

"No. And I don't care. You shouldn't pick on innocent people."

"I'm the Salamander!" He shouted shooting a jet of sickly pink at the man. He didn't even move even as the flames concealed him. Salamander laughed evilly, but then they started disappearing. The man was EATING THE FLAMES! Lucy's jaw dropped in shock and so did Salamander's as the flames disappeared.

"You sure you're a flame mage? These are some nasty flames!" He exclaimed while eating them.

In the light of the flames, Lucg could make out some of his features. Rosy pink hair and hard, slanted eyes. A scarf whipped against the updraft created by the heat of the flames. Lucy twitched her fingers. The spell had almost worn off.

"Okay. Now or never." She muttered to herself, "LUCY-KICK!"

Lucy swung her leg with as much strength as she could muster and nailed Salamander in his manhood. He fell over and there was silence. That was broken by the other mystery man bursting out laughing. Lucy stared at the stranger with wide and confused eyes as he walked up to her and deposited her key ring in her hands.

"Here. Try not to loose these again. They're valuable." He said.

"Yeah. I know. Thank you for helping me, I'm not sure what would have happened if you didn't come when you did." Lucy said, clipping her keys on her belt again, "I'm Lucy. Um...what's your name?"

"Natsu."

"Right. Natsu, is there anything I can do to thank you for helping me?" Lucy asked.

Thr pink haired boy was silent for a moment, then a smile spread across his face. "Yea. There is something. It's an odd request though."

"That's fine. I'm used to odd."

"Good. Meet me at the outskirts of the forest tomorrow morning at 5."

"5 AM!?" Lucy exclaimed, "That's crazy!"

"Hey, you're the one who asked if there was anything you could do to thank me. This is it." Natsu said waving over his shoulder as he left, "See y'ah in the morning, Luigi."

"IT'S LUCY!" She shouted.

Natsu just scoffed and disappeared around the corner. Lucy growled and kicked the man in front of her one more time for good measure and left for her apartment.

"Ugh! I'm gonna have to tell Levy I can't be at the shop tomorrow!" Lucy exclaimed to herself, "What did I get myself into!?"

What indeed.

 **next morning**

The next morning Lucy's alarm went off at 4 in the morning. She groaned and slapped the alarm clock until it shut up. After crawling out of her oh-so-comfortable bed she pulled on some cute clothes and did her hair in a tiny side ponytail. Lucy peaked into Levy's room and grinned at seeing the sick Solid Script Mage was still fast asleep. Lucy grabbed a banana and snuck out the front door.

The forest was nice and cool that time of day. But it was eerily silent. No birds sung in the branches and no little woodland creatures scurried around the ground. More importantly, there was no pink-haired boy waiting for her. Lucy snickered. She's beat him to the forest.

"What took you so long?" asked an impatient voice from above.

Lucy looked up in the tree above her. And low and behold. Natsu was sitting on the tree branch lazily leaning against the trunk with his hands laced behind his head. Lucy was too shocked for words as he leapt down from the branch and landed in front of her.

"I'm surprised you came Luigi. I wasn't sure if you were serious or not."

"First, it's Lucy. L-u-c-y. And second, what could you possibly need help with in a forest?"

Natsu stayed quiet as he walked into the forest. Lucy had no choice but to follow the hot-headed pinkeette. Despite her protests, he didn't slow down or stop. He didn't even look over his shoulder or say anything to her until they reached a large, sheltered clearing. He whipped around and grasped Lucy's shoulders before forcing her to sit on a rock before squatting in front of her.

"This is gonna be hard for you to wrap your head around." He said.

"What is it?"

"I'm not human."

"Way to be direct, and WHAT!?" Lucy exclaimed.

"I'm a dragon and I need your help to get my wings."

"Isn't that an angel thing?" Lucy asked.

"Well...I'm half dragon on my dad's side. And half dragons don't get wings unless they 'unlock their hearts' as my dad put it."

"Couldn't you just ask your dad to help you?"

Natsu's eyes darkened. "I can't."

"Why not?"

"He disappeared. 7 years ago. Without a word." Natsu said sadly.

Lucy was shocked. She felt like a jerk for asking that. Lucy slid down off the rock to Natsu's level and hugged him.

"I'm sorry I asked about that." She said.

"It's okay." Natsu said, his voice breaking, "It happened a long time ago."

Lucy wasn't sure how long they stayed like that. Just hugging. It felt...nice. Wait a minute. What was she thinking! She just met this guy, why was she thinking these things about someone she just met last night! Heck, he wasn't even human!

"Thanks Lucy. I think I'm better now." Natsu said, pulling away.

Strangily, his face was tinted pink slightly.

"Are you sure you're okay Natsu? Your face is red."

"No it isn't!" He protested childishly.

Lucy laughed. "Hey, that was actually the first time you said my name right."

"Ha ha. So funny Luigi."

"Are we seriously going back to this?"

"Yep."

"Anyway, back on topic, how do we get your wings to come out?" Lucy asked thoughtfully, "And how exactly can I help?"

"Wait. You believe me?" Natsu asked surprised.

"It's a big pill to swallow, but after what I saw last night, I'd believe just about anything."

Relief washed over Natsu's face...for a reason Lucy didn't understand. Lucy chuckled at his childish expression as he stood up lighting his fists on fire.

"Alright! I'm all fired up! Let's do this!"

"Okay! We're gonna get you your wings!"


	2. Chapter 2

Natsu and Lucy continued into the forest blindly until Lucy noted a painstakingly obvious fact.

"How are we going to unlock your heart?" she asked.

"Not a clue."

"WHAT!? YOU DRAGGED ME INTO THIS AND YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO ACHIEVE THIS!" Lucy exclaimed, "WHY'D YOU PICK ME IN THE FIRST PLACE!?"

"I don't know. You looked like you knew a lot about the heart and all that junk." he shrugged.

"Why is unlocking your heart the only way to unlock your wings?"

"Dragon magic is tied to emotions. So experiencing new emotions can unlock new abilities." Natsu explained.

Lucy rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Maybe you need to experience love to get your wings?"

Natsu looked away from Lucy rather quickly. "That's a good idea but it's kind of stupid."

"THAT MAKES NO SENSE!" she protested.

Lucy was about to protest more when the bushes started to rustle violently. She yelped and hid behind Natsu while peaking over his shoulder at the rustling bushes.

"What is it? Is it a monster?" Lucy whimpered, shivering.

Natsu squinted at the bushes and sniffed. He leaned forward slightly. The bushes rustled more then...a blue cat emerged from the foliage. Lucy and Natsu froze in silent shock.

"Don't move. It can probably smell fear." Natsu deadpanned.

"No, but I can smell fish a mile away!" the cat exclaimed.

Natsu and Lucy screamed and latched on to each other as they did. Then Lucy kicked the blue cat and it was sent flying into the bushes again. Natsu lit his fist on fire and Lucy picked up a vine to function as a whip as the unmistakably cute creature emerged with a large lump on its head.

"Ow...why'd you kick me? You're mean." the cat mumbled, "And weird. Mean and weird. And fat."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING FAT YOU STUPID CAT!" Lucy shouted.

"I'm not stupid! I'm Happy!"

"Yeah, you are little bud. But what's your name?" Natsu asked, crouching down to the cat.

"Happy!"

Lucy couldn't stop staring. It was a blue _talking_ cat. She could take the whole "half-dragon" thing but the talking blue cat named Happy is just too much. Natsu seemed to notice her internal mental break down.

"Hey Luce, are you okay?" he asked.

"It's a talking blue cat. How are you unaffected by this!?"

"Half Dragon remember? Geez, Luigi you're stupid."

"IT'S LUCY AND THIS ISN'T SOMETHING THAT I EXPERIENCE EVERYDAY!" she shouted.

Natsu and Happy stared at Lucy in shock for a moment.

"...And very loud." Happy said, slowly, "Mean, weird, fat, and loud."

"STOP CALLING ME THAT YOU WEIRD TALKING CAT!"

"I don't just talk" he said revealing angelic white wings, "I fly too!"

Lucy's eye twitched and she sat down on a fallen log, cupping her face in her hands. This was too much for her to take. She missed Levy and their quant little bookstore. Most of all she missed her _normal_ life. No half-dragons. No talking, flying, blue cats named Happy. Someone sat next to her on the log and rubbed her back in soothing circles. Lucy looked up and it was the last person she expected, but there was no one else who could be doing that.

"Sorry Luce. Guess I shouldn't have expected you to adjust to this so quickly."

"No. I'm sorry, guess I wasn't as used to weirdness as I thought." she chuckled.

"That's something I find hard to believe." Happy said, "Because you're really weird Luigi!"

"Shut up cat." she muttered, sadly.

"But in a good way!" the magic cat continued.

"Hey, Happy. I gotta question for y'ah." Natsu said, "Do you have any idea how to unlock the heart?"

The blue cat paused thoughtfully, resting a paw against his furry blue chin. "Hmm...I may have an idea where we could find someone who could know."

"Awesome! Could you take us to him?" Natsu cheered.

"Aye! Follow me!"

...

After three hours of seemingly mindless wandering, Natsu finally broke.

"Haaaappppyyyy!" Natsu groaned, "You sure we're going the right way?"

The blue cat didn't listen, but kept muttering to himself about if this was the way to someplace Lucy didn't catch the name of. She continued fiddling with the vine she had grabbed earlier and was weaving the bottom of it into a kind of handle so it would be an effective whip. Natsu gazed boredly at her and what she was doing.

"What're you doing Luigi?" he asked.

"For the last time...you know what forget it. I'm making a whip."

"Why?"

"Because, unlike you I can't solve every problem by punching something." she scoffed.

"Can't you summon those spirits of yours?" Natsu suggested lacing his hands behind his head lazily.

"Not all the time. I run out of magic too quickly."

"Oh. I see now, you're making a whip as a back up." Natsu said, "That's really smart."

Lucy smiled at Natsu, "You know, you're smarter then you look Natsu, I didn't expect you to figure out what I was doing."

"What? Did you think I was some sort of idiot?"

"Kinda."

"Luigi! You're so mean!" he pouted.

"And you're childish."

Suddenly Happy turned around to face them.

"Are we there yet?" Lucy moaned, "We've been walking for hours."

Happy started sweating a little. Lucy's heart sank into her stomach.

"Oh no. Don't tell me we're lost."

"Aye!"

"DON'T 'AYE' ME!"

Natsu laughed a little. "This ain't a problem. I can find a way to the nearest village."

"You can?"

"Yeah! I'm half-dragon. Don't underestimate a dragon's nose."

Natsu sniffed the air like a blood hound and started off in an a different direction muttering something about how that couldn't be right. He froze, onyx eyes wide. His sudden stop surprised Lucy and she bumped into his solid form. Peaking over his shoulder, a man probably a few years older then both Natsu and Lucy was lazing underneath a tree by a river. He had long raven black hair (his hair was longer then Lucy's) and multiple piercings on his face and arms.

"Natsu...? Do you recognize that guy?"

He didn't answer but just walked into the clearing and up to the man. The man woke from his slumber, opening unsettling red eyes and glanced unamused at the pink haired half-dragon.

"Who're you?" he asked in an unfriendly sounding voice.

"You're a half-dragon." Natsu said ignoring his question.

"Yeah. And you are...?"

"My name's Natsu, and I'm half-Fire Dragon."

"Gajeel. Half-Iron Dragon."

'Gajeel'? Why does that name sound familiar?

The two half-dragons stared each other down. Each half-dragon sizing up the other. Then something unexpected happened.

Ruby red scales started surfacing on Natsu's skin like they were rising from underneath it. Gajeel smirked at him and similar metallic grey scales forced their way to the surface of his skin until he had a full suit of armor.

Natsu exploded forward hit Gajeel square in the jaw with a flaming fist and sent him tumbling across the clearing. Lucy could only watch, jaw gapping. Why the heck did he do that? The half-Iron Dragon didn't look like a guy you wanted to get angry at you. Heck he was no doubt over 6 feet tall. Gajeel stood up and rubbed his no doubtedly sore jaw and locked his red eyes on Lucy. She yelped and stepped behind a tree. From her hiding spot she could hear Gajeel cackle and the hard exchange of blows.

What the heck was Natsu thinking? Was this a normal thing for half-dragons? Well, whatever was going on Lucy wanted to stay well out of it. She didn't know much about half-dragons, but they didn't sound like push-overs. Lucy peaked behind the truck of the tree and was greeted by the crude smile of the half-Iron Dragon.

"Thought you were there." he smirked grabbing her by the front of her shirt, "Don't be shy Bunny Girl, I ain't gonna bite."

"PUT HER DOWN METAL MUNCHER!" Natsu bellowed.

The fiery pinkette rocketed from behind Gajeel and nailed him hard with a flaming kick to the back. Unfortunately it did little to harm the giant man and he just spun around and hit Natsu with an iron rod. That was his arm. Lucy felt her muscles seizing up in fright. What kind of a monster is he? The monster in question turned back to Lucy with the same crude smile on his face.

"What's a human like you doing around a half-dragon?" he asked, obviously interested.

Gajeel didn't wait for an answer as he harshly threw Lucy to the edge of the riverbank.

"LUCY!" Natsu shouted, "Leave her out of this Gajeel! This is between us dragons!"

"Got a little crush Salamander?" he cackled, looking between Lucy and Natsu, "Oh. So _that's_ what you're after."

Never before had Lucy witnessed a more murderous look then what was gracing Natsu's features. It was more like the look of a wild beast that was about to tear into the flesh of another animal that had invaded its territory. Wow, she's read too many books, she's starting to think like the descriptions. Gajeel unfurled metallic wings from his back and shot into the air. He cackled mockingly at Natsu as he looked down on the grounded half-dragon.

"What's the matter? Can't fly Salamander?"

"You jerk!" Natsu fumed, "And don't call me 'Salamander'!"

Suddenly a blue steak bolted from the forest and picked up Natsu. Natsu shouted in surprise as his feet left the ground and Lucy watched in amazement as Happy flew Natsu up to Gajeel's level.

"I've got you Natsu! Leave the flying to me for now!" the blue cat cheered.

"Alright Happy! Let's get him!" Natsu reared his head back, " **Fire Dragon Roar!"**

Lucy gawked in a mix of horror and amazement as a jet of red-orange flames rushed from Natsu's mouth at Gajeel. That was the trigger for an all out war between them. Soon they were exchanging blows, but as time crept on Natsu started to loose his pace and Gajeel was landing more blows on Natsu then Natsu was on Gajeel. Lucy clutched her hair trying to remember where she heard that name.

"Dang it! Why can't I remember!" she decided to focus on that later and stared up at the fairly one-sided battle, "I need to help Natsu."

Lucy's eyes fell on the river in front of her and an idea clicked into her head. She snatched a gold key from her key ring and thrusted it into the water.

" **Open! Gate of the Water** **Barrier: Aquarius**!" she shouted.

The sound of an old doorbell rang through the clearing as the spirit in question erupted gracefully from the water of the river. Aquarius's annoyed glare fell on Lucy, sending shivers up her spine. The mermaid spirit tucked her urn under her arm and glared at Lucy.

"What'd you summon me for? I was in the middle of something!" she yelled.

"I'm sorry! But I really need your help!" Lucy pleaded, "I need you to use your water to shoot that guy with the piercings down!"

"Tch."

"DON'T 'TCH' AT ME!" Lucy shouted.

"This is what you interrupted my date for? Shooting some looser down?'

"What? Can't you do it?"

"Of course I can do it you brat! Are you saying I'm weak!?"

Cold sweat broke out on Lucy's brow. "N-No! Of course not!"

"THAT'S IT! I'M GONNA WASH YOU ALL AWAY!"

The water of the river exploded into a 30 foot tall tsunami. Easily able to reach and consume the arial battle taking place not to far. Lucy held her breath as the wave crashed down over her head and swirled her around the clearing. The water soon resided, leaving behind a pair of sputtering, now scaleless half-dragons and a drenched Lucy.

"WHY'D YOU HAVE TO WASH ME AWAY TOO!? I ASKED YOU TO JUST SHOOT DOWN GAJEEL!" Lucy shouted angrily at the water spirit.

"I'm sorry. I only meant to wash you away. I hit them by mistake." Aquarius sighed.

"YOU MEANT TO HIT ME!?" Lucy yelled.

"Now if you don't mind, I've got to get back to my date. With my _boyfriend_." she smirked, emphasizing the last word as she disappeared.

Lucy was about to shout more angry comments at the rude spirit but stopped.

"That's it!" Lucy exclaimed.

"What's it Luce?" Natsu asked, sitting up in his puddle.

"I remember where I've heard that name before!"

"What? 'Gajeel'?"

"Yeah! Levy has a boyfriend with that name!" Lucy exclaimed pointing at Gajeel, "She told me that the day I was out of town a guy dropped by the store and they kinda hit it off."

All eyes were on Gajeel, who looked a little uncomfortable under the stares. Not to mention red.

"Took y'ah long enough to figure it out Bunny Girl." he grumbled.

Natsu was gobsmacked and latched onto Lucy's shoulders. "You knew where another half-dragon was and you didn't tell me!?"

"I didn't know he _was_ a half-dragon! And I didn't know where he was, because Levy said he left on a trip about a month ago!"

"And I was headin' back until Salamander here interrupted my nap."

"I just have two questions." Lucy said, looking at Natsu, "What was with the scales? AND WHY THE HECK DID YOU PICK A FIGHT WITH HIM!?"

Gajeel chuckled. "You obviously don't know a lot about half-dragons Bunny Girl. Fighting's how we get to know each other and the scales appear when we're gettin' ready to fight."

"So you were basically saying 'hello'?" Happy asked, gobsmacked.

"Pretty much." Natsu shrugged, "But how did you get you're wings?"

"Simple. I unlocked my heart."

"How!?" Natsu shouted.

Gajeel chuckled and crossed his arms. "You already are have everything you need, you moron."

"WHAT'D YOU SAY IRON MAN!?" Natsu growled, ruby red flashing across his skin.

"No, no, don't fight. Please!" Lucy pleaded.

But she was ignored. Insults were traded between the two until the bushes rustled and a black panther-like cat similar to Happy strolled out of the bushes with a sword strapped to his back. The cat looked between Lucy, Natsu, Happy, and Gajeel and scowled at Gajeel.

"I leave you alone for one second and you get into a fight." he scolded the half-Iron Dragon.

"Geez Lily, get off my case!" Gajeel protested, throwing his arms in the air, "I wasn't expecting another half-dragon to show."

Lily looked between Lucy and Natsu before looking at Lucy.

"It's not like you to fight a woman, half-dragon or not."

Lucy sweat-dropped. What was going on with this cat's head? "Um...I'm not the half-dragon."

"Oh?" Lily looked at Natsu and then Lucy again, "Oh. I see now."

"Salamander's going for _that_." Gajeel grinned mockingly.

"Oh." Lily smiled, "Good for you."

Natsu exploded again. "I can't take this cryptic crap anymore! What the heck am I supposed to do!?"

Gajeel sighed and pulled Natsu over to the far side of the clearing by his scarf. Lucy was left with the strange cats as the two half-dragons talked about...Lucy was assuming it was about unlocking Natsu's heart. Lucy sat underneath the tree and stared up at the leaves. What exactly was she supposed to do? Lucy had no idea what went on in the life of a half-dragon. Heck, until this morning she didn't even know half-dragons _existed._ Lucy stifled a long yawn. The adrenaline had worn off and she had when to bed at about 11 pm and got up at 4 am. 6 hours of sleep was not enough.

"Lushi, why are you tired?" Happy asked.

"Only got...6 hours of sleep...last night." she said between yawns before she slipped into a hazy sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you to everyone that has followed/favorited my work. It makes me feel good that people actually like what I'm writing and I hope I can continue to come out with work that measures up to the expectations. Thank you for reading my stories :)**

...

The first thing Lucy noticed when she woke up was the presence of something soft against her face and a steady movement accompanied by the crackle of gravel underneath feet. Lucy's brown eyes creaked open to something...pink. Her face flushed in embarrassment upon realizing that Natsu was carrying her on his back down a gravel road.

"Natsu? When did we leave the forest?" she asked, waking up.

Natsu stopped. "You're awake now Lucy?"

"Yeah."

The support under her legs disappeared and Lucy stumbled to regain her balance.

"You're right Happy, she is heavy."

"WHAT WAS THAT!?" Lucy shouted.

"And loud..."

Lucy huffed and walked ahead of them down the gravel path, still fuming about being called heavy and loud. The nerve of that guy! He asks for her help, but he takes every chance he can get to make snide remarks about her. She glared at the half-dragon over her shoulder, and for some reason her anger started to evaporate. If Lucy didn't know the truth about Natsu, she would have assumed that he was just an ordinary person. He walked like an ordinary human, laughed like one, talked like one, and over all he just seemed...normal. He was kind of sweet in his own way...GAHH! Why was she having these thoughts!?

"Lushi! I'm hungry...can you summon that fish spirit from earlier?" Happy groaned.

"You mean Aquarius?"

"Is she the fish one?"

"...She's a mermaid...I think."

"Can you summon her?"

Lucy scanned the road for water, but there was none. Not even a puddle.

"Can't. I need water to summon Aquarius, but I'm not going to summon her just for you to eat her cat!" Lucy said, "But food does sound nice..."

"Maybe we can go to that town over there and grab some grub." Natsu suggested pointing ahead of them.

On the next hill was a large town. Happy seemed excited.

"That's it! That's the place!" he cheered, pumping a paw into the air, "I'm sure the guild can help you with...that thing."

"Unlocking my heart?" Natsu offered.

"Yeah!"

"What guild? You never mentioned a guild, cat." Lucy scowled.

"I'm part of a guild called 'Fairy Tail'! The Master of the guild knows a whole lot so he could help!"

"Why do I get a sense of foreshadowing from this?" Lucy wondered out loud.

"Don't be such a grump Luigi! Let's go see this guild!" Natsu cheered.

A low rumbled stopped the half-dragon in his tracks.

"You need to eat something Lucy, your stomach sounds like a dying whale." Natsu said.

"THAT WASN'T ME YOU IDIOT!"

"Quit denying it Lushi. We all know your stomach's loud like you are." Happy added.

"YOU ONLY JUST MET ME CAT! WE'VE BARELY KNOWN EACH OTHER FOR MORE THEN A DAY!"

"True, but you are hungry aren't y'ah?"

"...Are you? When's the last time you ate?"

"This morning."

"Isn't it about mid-afternoon now?"

"Yeah."

"...Let's get some food. You have money don't you?" Lucy asked, crossing her arms.

"...yeah."

"Good, because I'm not paying for your meals dragon boy."

"That's mean Luuuucccyyy!" Natsu whined.

"That's what you get for calling me heavy and loud!"

"We're sorry."

"You better be." Lucy scowled, "Now let's get going. I'm excited to see this guild."

...

Lucy was very glad that she refused to pay for Natsu's meal. Who knew half-dragons had a bottomless pit for a stomach? Lucy did now. After they ate Lucy sighed as she counted her money.

"Hey Happy, is there anywhere you know where we can earn some quick money?" Lucy asked.

Natsu grumbled a little. Something about her not asking him. "You could join Fairy Tail. It's a wizard guild." Happy suggested.

"Hmm. I'll think about that. What about you Natsu?"

"Huh?"

"Would you consider joining Fairy Tail?"

"Maybe...but I wanna get my wings first."

Happy whispered something into Natsu's ear and he turned beet red and shouted at Happy. Lucy raised an eyebrow. What the heck could get that guy so flustered? He basically walked around without a shirt on. Not that Lucy was complaining...shut up brain.

"Right...if you two are done, lead the way Happy."

The blue cat chuckled and flew on ahead of Lucy and lead them straight to a large building with a banner across the front depicting a strange symbol that Lucy couldn't make heads or tails of. The sign under the banner was a lot more helpful though. In big looping letters were the words : "Fairy Tail".

"It's huge!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Yep~! Now come on!" Happy sad, trying to force the doors open.

Since Happy was so small, the doors didn't really move at all. Lucy sweat-dropped and placed a hand on the door to push it open but Natsu unexpectedly kicked it open. Happy flew in.

"I'm back! And I brought company!" he cheered.

The guild looked like a battle field. There were tables haphazardly overturned and chairs broken into kindling. The people in the guild were brawling apparently, but had stopped when Natsu kicked the door open (not to mention almost ripped it off its hinges). Lucy chuckled nervously as all the men in the guild seemed to be checking her out, she subconsciously stood a little closer to Natsu who was also taking in the atmosphere or the guild. Suddenly there was a guy with orange hair and glasses standing next to her holding her hand.

 **(A/N: I hate flirts...this is going to be one of the most painful bits for me to write -_-")**

"You're beauty is so striking that it calmed these ruffians. And captured my heart." he swooned.

"I think it had more to do with Natsu kicking the door in..." Lucy said, but her comment fell on deaf ears.

"How would you like to go on a romantic evening out on the town with me? Just the two of us." the guy asked leaning closer.

Out of nowhere a flaming fist hit him in the side of the face and sent him spiraling across the street and into a fruit stand. Lucy's jaw dropped as Natsu growled at the orange haired man with the same ferocity as a wild animal, the ruby red scales coating his fist like a vicious chainmail. Why was he like that? Wait...no. No way, he couldn't be. Lucy shook her head. There was no way that Natsu felt that way.

Her jumbled thoughts were interrupted by Natsu getting kicked in the back by a guy with no shirt on.

"What's your deal man? Beating on our guild mates out of the blue? You got charcoal for brains?" he asked.

Natsu grabbed him by his ankle and pulled him off his feet. After a couple of blows, the guild started a full scale war again, forcing Lucy to take cover behind the bar.

"So. Are you new here?" asked a kind voice.

Also seeking refuge behind the bar was a lady with pretty white hair.

"Um...we're just here on a lead for something." Lucy explained, "My friend has something he wanted to ask your guild master."

"'Friend'?" she asked, confused, "From the way he snapped at Loke, I would guess he was your boyfriend."

Lucy's face flushed about 20 different shades of red. "N-No! No way! We literally only met yesterday!"

"It doesn't look that way to me." she laughed, "My name's Mirajane by the way, but you can call me Mira."

"I'm Lucy. And the pink haired guy I was with is Natsu."

"Natsu and Lucy, huh?" she mused thoughtfully, "NaLu then."

"Excuse me?"

"That's your couple name. You two seem like a perfect match." Mira grinned brightly, clapping her hands together.

"Whoa whoa! Slow down Mira! There's nothing going on between-"

"SHUT UP YOU BRATS!" A voice boomed.

Immediately the room quieted. Lucy peaked over the bar and paled. A giant man towered over the fight and he didn't look too happy. Natsu didn't seem to read the mood and stood up laughing.

"You all chickened out! I win!" he cheered.

The giant stomped on Natsu and pinned him down to the floor. "Who the heck are you brat?"

"N-Natsu." he croaked.

"Hmm."

The giant then disappeared and a very short man landed in front of Natsu. He was just as surprised as Lucy was.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Makarov. The master of these brats." he introduced, "What brings you to our stink hole of a guild?"

"Happy said you might know something about 'unlocking the heart'."

"Hmm. I see. You're a half-dragon aren't you? Haven't gotten your wings yet, huh?"

"Yeah..."

"I might have something that could help, but I'll need your girlfriend to be present."

Natsu's face heated up more then Lucy figured a fire dragon could.

"L-Lucy's not my girlfriend!" he protested.

"Hmm. I see the problem now." Makarov hummed, "Where is the girl? She didn't get crushed in the fighting did she?"

Mira forced Lucy out from behind the bar with a very big grin on her face. "No Master, she's right here!"

"Good. Come along."

The short man disappeared behind a door and Natsu and Lucy had no choice but to follow the strange old man. Lucy stole a glance at Natsu, coincidentally the same time he was looking at her. Both looked away in mild embarrassment.

"They liiiiiiiiikkke eachother~" Happy sang.

"CAT!" Lucy shouted, clearly flustered.

Natsu nudged her towards the room Makarov disappeared into and she huffed before continuing into the surprisingly spacious room. Makarov leapt up on a table and sat cross-legged on a table with his staff leaned lazily in the crook of his arm. His beady eyes scanned Lucy in a way that made her extremely self-concious.

"You're a half-dragon correct, Natsu?" Makarov asked.

Natsu nodded. And Makarov looked at Lucy.

"And you're traveling with him to help him unlock his heart?"

"Y-Yes. But how are we supposed to do that?" Lucy asked.

Makarov chuckled, his eyes glittering teasingly. "'We'?"

Lucy flushed red and Makarov chuckled lightly at her expense.

"How do you unlock the heart?" Natsu asked, growing impatient.

"Isn't it obvious? You must fall in love."

"WHAT!?" Lucy and Natsu exclaimed.

"Hey Luce, you were right!" Natsu beamed, "It is love. So I just need to feel love to get my wings?"

"Yes, but it's a little deeper then that. You have to feel a deep, true love for someone." Makarov explained, "What's your opinion about Miss. Lucy here?"

Natsu stuttered a little. "What do I think of Lucy? Um...she's nice I guess. Really weird and loud."

"Gee. Thanks. You're weird and loud too you know."

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not! Am not! Am not!"

"Are too! Are too! Are too!"

"Am no-"

Makarov cleared his throat. "If you two would quit arguing like an old married couple I could give farther instruction."

Lucy stepped away from Natsu and stood next to a bookcase awkwardly. Why was she feeling so awkward around him? And why was she kind of disappointed that he just called her 'nice'? Was she expecting...a little more?

"I WHAT!?" Natsu's sudden exclamation snapped her out of her thoughts.

"You heard me boy. Kiss her." Makarov said, nodding at Lucy.

"W-Wait. Hold on a minute. We've only known each other no more then a day! We can't..." she protested, "We can't kiss!"

"Yeah! I don't even like her!" Natsu shouted.

The room fell silent. Lucy honestly felt like someone had crushed her heart. He didn't like her? She sprinted to the door and yanked the handle open and charged through the guildhall, ignoring the protests from Natsu and Makarov. Wizards cast her sideways glances as she rocketed past them, Mira even tried to ask what was wrong, but Lucy didn't even slow down until she was at the edge of a forest and out of breath. Something wet streaked down her face. Tears. Why was she crying? Why did she care what some non-human guy she had just met a day before thought of her? Something must be wrong with her. Lucy ventured into the forest and sat underneath a big shaded tree and sighed loudly.

"What's wrong with me?" she asked herself, "Why am I so hurt by his words?"

 _I don't even like her!_

Lucy clutched her chest where her heart was. "Why does it hurt so much?"

Maybe she should just go home. Abandon this senseless quest and go back to her nice quiet life. Where the only half-dragon she would have to see had not the slightest care of who she was. Where she could continue running the bookstore with Levy and talk all day about the latest books they read and talk about their plans for the weekend. She could just forget about the pink haired half-dragon, leave him alone. He wouldn't care if she just vanished. Would he?

 _I don't even like her!_

"No. He wouldn't." she said out loud, standing up, "I'll just go home. Not like I'll be missed here."

A twig snapped behind her and Lucy's hand instantly flew to her keys, picking out a specific gold key: Taurus.

"Who's there?" she demanded.

The bushes rustled and out came...a rabbit. Lucy sighed in relief and relaxed her guard. Right before something small flew out of the bushes and pierced her shoulder. Lucy yelped and pulled it out. In her hand was a tiny blow gun dart. She raised an eyebrow at it, as her vision started blurring. It's a tranquilizer! Lucy fumbled for Taurus's key. She grasped it, but the pouch for the rest of her keys fell off her belt and thudded softly in the grass. Lucy shakily extended the gold key outwards.

" **O**... **Open**. **Gate of the**... **Golden**... **Bu**..."

Lucy couldn't even finish her summoning as she toppled over into the grass, the key slipping from her fingers and into the grass. Out of the bushes the rabbit emerged from stood a familiar figure, but with Lucy's mind in a haze she couldn't put a name to the face.

"Nighty night. Heartfilia girl."


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N WARNING! IMPORTANT:**_ **I will be going somewhere for a couple weeks and I am not sure if I'll be able to update while I'm away. This may be one of the last chapters for a couple weeks.**

Lucy's consciousness floated above her head like a balloon on a fraying string. It was there, but barely. But it wasn't enough for her to so much as twitch her fingers, let alone stop the guy that was kidnapping her. Finally her consciousness left her entirely...

 **...**

The ground beneath Lucy vibrated and thudded unevenly. Sleepily, she cracked open her eyes to total darkness. With some effort she tried sitting up, but found her hands were tied behind her. Grunting she lifted her head and bumped into something hard. She yelped, but it came out muffled thanks to a thick cotton cloth rapped around her mouth.

 _Great_. she thought sarcastically, _Drugged, kidnapped, tied-up and gagged in a trunk on some moving vehicle. Just great._

She thumped her shoulder against the wooden walls of her tiny prison, but in vain. With the loud rumbling no one was going to hear her. Next she tried to force the lid open, but a slight metallic jingle after much heaving with her feet told her it was not only locked but at the bottom or in the middle of a pile of luggage.

 _How am I still getting air then if I'm in a chest?_

Lucy's subconscious question was answered when her fingers found a quarter sized hole behind her. She could easily stick one of her fingers out of it for a few inches before brushing another chest behind her. With Lucy's creative mind she deduced that whoever kidnapped her obviously didn't want her to suffocate in this thing. Lucy wasn't sure how long she was stuck inside that chest but she found nothing in it that could help her escape and it must have been secured with straps in its pile or just in the middle of one because no matter how much she threw her weight against the chest walls it barely even moved an inch.

 _Dang it. I'm stuck in here. And I don't have my keys either...my keys! Oh no, Aquarius is going to be peeved that I dropped her key!_

More importantly, she didn't really like her chances of escaping this thing. Over the rumble of the engines, no one would hear her muffled cries or her fruitless banging. Her only chance would be to flounder around when the luggage was unloaded, but there would be a chance that whoever her kidnapper was would get his luggage (her) and not even respond to her thrashing.

 _What am I gonna do? There's no way that anyone could find me in time! What does this creep want with me anyway!? This is a time where I wish I wasn't so cute_ **(A/N: Classic Lucy)**. Then a thought struck her like lightning, _Before I passed out he said 'Heartfilia'! He-He knows! He knows who I am! And I have no doubt that father is the one behind this! I need to get out of here and fast! I don't want to go back there!_

Tears streamed sideways down her face as she remembered her childhood home. Heartfilia manor. It was a happier place before her mother died, but when her mother passed away from a sudden illness Lucy's father became withdrawn, harsh and cold. He even forgot her birthday. Heck, Lucy was willing to bet that he forgot she existed a couple of times. She ran away a year ago and she never had any trouble from him so now he wants her back? Why? Lucy felt an odd mixture of anger and sadness bubbling up in her, making the tears stream faster.

 _Where's Natsu when I need him?_ she wondered, _Oh. Right. He doesn't like me...I guess I can't count on him coming to the rescue this time. I-I'm scared! I don't want to go back to the manor! Someone please help!_

 **Natsu's POV (a little earlier):**

Lucy charged out of the room and soon out of the guild. After those words had left his mouth Natsu immediately wished he could take them back. He don't know how he felt about Lucy honestly. Sure, she was pretty, smart, and kind, but she was really weird, loud, and a bit of a scaredy-cat. But she had accepted him despite him not being fully human and had offered to help him find his wings. And he hurt her with his words. Why they seemed to hurt her so much was beyond him, but what mattered was those tears he saw pricking at her eyes.

Makarov shock his head at Natsu in obvious disappointment.

"That was over the line. It's obvious that Lucy harbors some feeling towards you that she doesn't understand, but saying you didn't like her, she must have come to believe that you hate her." Makarov scolded, "Go and find her and apologize. She's your only chance at getting your wings, you brat!"

Natsu didn't need to be told twice, though he was curious on how Makarov was so sure that Lucy was Natsu's only shot at getting his wings. He charged out of the room after her only to crash into Happy.

"Natsu what's wrong with Lucy? She ran out of the guild all sad looking!"

"I messed up bud. Now I need to make it right. Can you help me find her?"

"Aye sir!"

Natsu and Happy both ran towards the doors only to be stopped by the shirtless guy Natsu fought with earlier.

"Oh great, what the heck do you want you pervert?" Natsu demanded, "Can't you see we're in a hurry?"

"What did you do flame-for-brains?" he demanded.

"I didn't do nothing!"

"Then explain to me why that blonde girl ran out of the guild looking like she was gonna cry!"

"I...I may have accidentally made her think I hated her." Natsu mumbled sheepishly.

"Wow. You royally screwed up."

"Thanks for pointing out the obvious captain underwear!"

"GAHH! I WAS SURE I HAD PANTS ON A MINUTE AGO!"

Happy suddenly flew between them. "You may want to tone it down! Or you'll attract the attention of _her_."

" _Her?_ Who's _her_?"

Even the shirtless guy paled (and he was pretty pale to begin with). "Oh dang. Not _her_!"

"Who's _her_?" Natsu asked again.

"The strongest female wizard in the guild. The Titania, Erza."

As if on cue, a dominate figure dawning armor with scarlet red hair appeared behind the shirtless dude with the scariest look Natsu had ever seen. And that was saying a lot coming from a guy who was raised by a fire-breathing _dragon_. If looks could kill then Natsu would be dead, buried and decomposed.

"Gray. Explain to me why you were fighting?" she demanded in a deadly calm voice.

"E-Erza! Um, fighting? Me? No, of course not! We were just...talking. Yeah." Gray stuttered, sweating bullets.

The scary red head turned her attention to Natsu. "Is this true?"

"A-Aye!" he squeaked.

"Good. I don't like it when my fellow guild mates fight."

"B-But I'm not part of the guild." Natsu said, momentarily breaking from his terror.

"Doesn't matter to me. You seem to fit in well in this environment. Now why were you two arguing in the first place?"

"Flame-brain screwed up and made the blonde girl he was with think he hated her."

Erza's scary face returned with a vengeance. "Is this true?"

"A-Aye."

Next thing Natsu knew was he was sent flying into a pile of empty keg barrels by a swift punch delivered by the furious Titania who now towered over him more then she did earlier. She grabbed him by his scarf and dragged him from his crumpled heap and out of the guild, Happy and Gray tailing them out of terror.

"You are going to apologize to her this instant." Erza threatened, "Or you won't live long enough to break another girl's heart."

"I-I didn't break anyone's heart!" Natsu protested.

"It's obvious from how violently she reacted that she has feelings for you and you senselessly dashed them like a pile of dirt." Erza scolded, "You must make amends before it's too late."

Erza stopped dragging him and tossed him in front of her.

"Track her down. You're a half-dragon correct?"

Natsu nodded.

"Then you have an excellent sense of smell, so what are you waiting for? Start tracking!" Erza ordered.

"A-Aye!"

Natsu quickly started sniffing the air like a dog until he found the scent that he was looking for. Strawberries and vanilla. Lucy's scent. Even if they'd only known each other for a day, Natsu would recognize that smell anywhere. He sprinted off, following the scent trail but he heard footsteps behind him. Glancing over his shoulder he saw that Happy, Erza, and Gray were following him.

"Why're you following me?" he demanded.

"We're coming to make sure you don't screw up more then you already have!" Gray said.

"A girl's heart can be easily broken with the wrong words, you will need to exercise caution as you apologize."

"What's her name anyway?" Gray asked, "I don't think I ever caught it."

"Her name's Lucy!" Happy chimed, "She's really weird, loud, and kinda heavy. But she's a nice person sometimes."

"All the more reason to find her and make things right."

The scent trail continued for a ways until it was in the forest. The trail came to an abrupt halt by a large tree. Natsu looked around the clearing for the blonde mage, but found something else. Lucy's keys. He picked up the key pouch in his hand and the solitary key not to far from it and grasped it hard.

"Natsu? What's wrong?" Happy asked.

"Lucy's keys." he said holding up the discarded pouch and it's solitary key.

"Lucy is a Celestial mage?" Gray asked.

Natsu nodded.

"Then those keys must mean a lot to her."

"So that begs the question what they're doing in the middle of the forest without Lucy anywhere in sight." Erza commented.

A new scent caught Natsu's attention. No. Not a new scent. A familiar one. Nat's fist erupted in flames.

"Salamander." He growled.

"Salamander?" Gray asked.

"A guy that attacked Lucy yesterday. I saved her from that guy, it's how we met." Natsu explained, "His scent's here. It meets Lucy's at the spot where her scent stops."

"That means he must have kidnapped her!" Gray exclaimed.

"Poor Lucy!" Happy said.

"We have no time to waste! We must retrieve our nakama!" Erza declared, "Lead the way Natsu!"

 **Time Skip** **A/N: Natsu's POV starts after Lucy ran out of the guild in case your confused**

"This is where it stops." Natsu informed standing at the end of the platform, "The scent's relatively fresh. Maybe ten minute's old."

Erza nodded and stormed over to a porter boy and grabbed him by his shirt and lifted him off the ground.

"What was the last train that left this station from this platform about ten minutes ago?" she demanded.

"T-Ten minutes ago? Um...that's that train's finally destination is Konzern **(A/N: Made up town name for where the Heartfilia manor is. It was never specified but for the purpose of this story it will be in a town called Konzern)** , but it's going to make several stops along the way! I-I'll go print you a list!" he stammered.

Erza released his shirt and he scampered off. Erza turned to Gray.

"Gray, get a magic mobile. If we have any chance of catching up to this 'Salamander' then we can't afford to wait for the train, we need to get there as soon as possible." Erza ordered.

Gray ran off and a few minutes later came back with said vehicle. Natsu felt his stomach tie itself in knots just thinking about getting on that thing. Why did Lucy's kidnapper have to use a vehicle? Gray slapped him out of his thoughts, literally.

"Yo charcoal brain! Get your butt in gear, we're leaving!"

Natsu nodded briefly and looked at Happy, "Hey Happy, could we fly next to them?"

"I could try, but I don't see why."

Gray raised an eyebrow at Natsu. "What, you scared of vehicles or something?"

"Or something. I-I get really bad motion sickness. It's a half-dragon thing." Natsu muttered.

Gray stared for a moment and started laughing, until Erza came over and grabbed both of them by necklace and scarf and tossed them in the back of the magic mobile (which was stationed on the other side of the tracks) as Erza strapped herself into the SE plug (Self Energy Plug) and the magic mobile rocketed off. Natsu immediately fell over with a sick face.

"Wow. You weren't kidding when you said you had really bad motion sickness Natsu." Gray commented.

"Shut up..." he groaned weakly hanging out the window and puking up what little was in his stomach.

He still hadn't gotten to eat anything. Even a little fire would be appreciated. A fire roast chicken sounds awesome too though. Natsu got too distracted by his thoughts of food to notice how fast they were closing in on a train. A familiar scent tripped Natsu's senses and he immediately perked up.

"That's it! That's the train! Salamander's on there!" Natsu shouted over the wind.

Erza must have heard him because their already fast speed increased (and so did Natsu's motion sickness) until they ramped off the wall of the gorge and landed in the coal compartment of the train. The group clambered out of the magic mobile (apart from Natsu, who was dragged out) and made their way through the train to the conductor's car.

"W-What are you doing here?" he asked.

"My name is Erza Scarlet. I have a special request that you grant up permission to search the luggage at the next stop."

"W-What? I'm sorry miss, but I can't let you do that." the conductor apologized, "That would be an invasion of privacy."

Gray slammed the man into the wall of the cart. "You don't get it do you? One of our friends has been kidnapped and the guy responsible is riding this very train!"

"Oh. Oh my, that is terrible. I will inform the authorities in our next stop. And you may search the luggage for your friend."

"Thank you sir. This is much appreciated. If I may ask, inform the authorities in a discrete way and when we reach the stop, say that there is engine trouble and the departure will be delayed by 45 minutes." Erza ordered.

"Yes, I'll make sure I do that. Good luck finding your friend. I hope they're okay."

The trio plus one cat exited the conductor's car and hid in the cart next to the luggage car.

"Hey...Erza why'd...you ask him...to let us...look when...the train stops...at the...next station? Why...didn't you...just make...him stop...the train...right...here?" Natsu managed to croak.

"If I did that, it would alert Salamander that we're here and know that he has Lucy. He would take her and blot then we'd have a tougher time finding them." Erza said.

"But how do you know Lucy's in the luggage?" Happy asked.

"Natsu said that Lucy's scent disappeared in the forest and with Lucy's dropped keys that adds to the proposition that she was drugged and carried to the train station. She's most likely in the luggage because if someone came on a train carrying an unconscious person it would raise suspicion especially when the drug wore off. He most likely has her stowed in a chest and since it would have to be as big as a person, it would naturally have to go in the luggage car."

"Wow Erza. You really pieced that together quickly. You should be a detective." Gray commented.

"The one thing I still am unclear on is the motivation. Konzern isn't as much of a town as it is a giant manor. Specifically the Heartfilia manor. The town around it is more of tourist housing and worker housing."

"So why...would...Salamander need...to go all...the way there?" Natsu croaked, "It's not like...Lucy's secretly...the missing heiress...or something...right?"

The trio thought for a moment before they all reached the same conclusion.

"Nah."

"The whole noble thing doesn't really fit Lucy." Happy agreed.

The crew was silent for a while. Natsu's thoughts were going just about as fast as this train (the thought made him more sick). This was mostly his fault, he made Lucy run off alone. He hurt her in such a way that it made her vulnerable to an attack and that's exactly what happened. She was attacked and kidnapped. Natsu would be lying if he said he wasn't worried about her, but what confused him was why he was so worried. They're only known each other for more then a day. He barely knew anything about her other then she was a Celestial mage, worked at a bookstore, was loud and kinda weird but at the same time level-headed and thoughtful, that she was actually really pretty and smelled like strawberries and vanilla. But he was as clueless about her daily life and her past as she was about his. They barely knew each other but when they were together it felt like they'd known each other for years. She was even really calm about the whole half-dragon thing (even if she freaked when Happy showed up, but he did too so there was really no room for him to talk) despite it being so freakishly unbelievable, but she believed him. Even though she was doing this to repay him for helping her when she was in danger, she still believed he was telling her the truth.

"Natsu, did you hear me?" Gray asked, impatiently, "What the heck're you doing flame brain? Quit spacing out!"

"Huh? What was that underwear princess?" he growled, his motion sickness momentarily forgotten.

"I said, do you think Lucy's okay, but you were too busy spacing out to notice!"

"I wasn't spacing out! I was thinking!"

"Oh, now I've heard it all! Fire Barfer thinking? Ha! That's the second stupidest thing you've said all day!"

"'Second'?"

"The first would be whatever you said that made Lucy run off in the first place. _That_ would be the stupidest thing you've said all day."

Natsu was silent. As much as it pained him to admit it, underwear princess was right. If he hadn't said that hurtful thing in Lucy's presence then she wouldn't be in this mess. Maybe if he had never excepted her offer of help, she wouldn't have been kidnapped in the first place.

"If you didn't bring her along then Salamander would have come back and taken her anyway." Gray pointed out.

"Did I say that out loud?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah, and." Gray punched him in the gut (making him upchuck more), "That's for calling me underwear princess. But like I was sayin', if you didn't accept Lucy's offer Salamander would have just came back the following night and taken her anyway. Then she'd have no one to go after her and no one to track her down."

"Gray is right." Erza chipped in, "You did the right thing bringing her along. Besides. She wouldn't have offered if she didn't want to come."

"The only thing that would probably be worth changing is taking back whatever mean comment you said about her." Happy added.

"Thanks...you guys!...You're the...best." he managed a shaky smile, his motion sickness once again effecting his speech.

"'Course we are. We're Fairy Tail mages." Gray shrugged.

The train suddenly stopped moving and Natsu's motion sickness ebbed away.

" _We've reached Roseworth_ **(A/N: Made up town)** _station. All passengers getting off at this station collect your luggage on the platform. Our next departure is to Lavender Village. We will depart in 45 minutes due to engine problems, so sit tight and thank you for your patience."_ the conductor announced over the loud speaker.

Natsu immediately stood up and ignited a fist. "Now's our chance. We have 45 minutes to find Lucy and take out this Salamander."

"Plenty of time. With your sense of smell we'll find her in no time." Gray smirked, standing up.

"Still, we must make haste. There's still a chance Salamander will check up on Lucy." Erza said, also standing.

"Aye! Let's save Lucy!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Still 3rd person Natsu's POV:**

The luggage cart was _huge_ and there were so many different trunks and chests that Natsu was glad that Erza asked for 45 minutes. He'd be useless if the train was still moving due to his motion sickness.

"Right, let's find Lucy. Natsu?" Erza said.

Natsu scented the air for Lucy but came back fruitless.

"Dang it! There's so many scents here that I can't lock onto her's!" he cursed.

"You're useless flame brain." Gray muttered.

"Hey! Why don't you try this, huh? Oh wait, you can't because you have a regular human nose!" Natsu growled.

Erza then grabbed them by their hair and slammed their heads together. And it _hurt_.

"Ow! WHAT THE HELL ERZA THAT HURT!" Natsu exclaimed.

"*gasp* Did you just sass the great Erza-sama!?" Happy gasped.

"'Sama'?" Gray asked, quietly.

"Focus. We have a limited window of time. Now keep searching." Erza ordered.

Natsu kept trying to pick up Lucy's scent, but it was still difficult to find with all the other scents in the room even after he tried picking up her scent from her key pouch (which he kept in his pocket for safe keeping). After about 20 minutes of fruitless searching Natsu leaned against a pile of chests that were secured to the wall.

"Dang it! This is useless! At this rate we'll never find her!" Natsu sighed.

 _thump_

"Huh? What was that?" Gray asked.

 _thump_

"There it is again!" Happy exclaimed.

 _thump thump thump_

"That must be Lucy!" Natsu exclaimed, "Lucy! Keep thumping! I'll get you out of there!"

Natsu started tearing into the pile of chests like a crazed beast following the sound of Lucy's thumping. Eventually, he made it to the back of the pile and in the back was a human sized chest that had its lid pulling against its locks. Natsu thrusted a flaming hand at the locks and melted them and flung the lid open.

"Luc-!" Natsu started, "Wait a minute. You aren't Lucy!"

" _Man."_ the guy in the chest said, " _Thank you sir for freeing me from my predicament. I am Ichiya of Blue Pegasus."_

(A/N: Weren't expecting that were you?)

"Never heard of you." Natsu dead-panned, "I'm glad I could help you, but I'm looking for someone else."

Ichiya didn't seem to be paying attention and locked fully on Erza.

" _I knew I recognized that beautiful parfum. Erza my darling!"_

The short man launched himself at Erza, who screamed in disgust and roundhouse kicked him out of the luggage cart and slammed the door shut then locked it.

"He's so creepy!" Erza shivered.

"Why did he call you 'my darling'?" Gray asked.

Erza shuddered. "I'd rather not talk about my relations with Ichiya."

"We're missing the important part! We still need to find-"

The door on the opposite side of the cart slid open. Erza grabbed the two mages and cat and yanked them behind a pile of supply crates as a slim figure strode into the room. Natsu's blood ran cold when he saw the man's face. Salamander. Natsu was about to launch at him in full out attack when Erza stopped him and shook her head then mouthed: "Wait". Natsu huffed silently and slid back down, his eyes not once leaving the detestable fire mage as he made his way through the pile Natsu tore through.

"Hmm. Straps must've come undone." Salamander hummed thoughtfully, "Well at least my cargo is unharmed."

He pulled a navy blue and brass chest out from a couple of rows over and set it down with a massive _thud_. Salamander smirked evilly as he took a key out of his pocket and undid the multiple locks on the chest. Natsu nose twitched as the smell of strawberries and vanilla washed over him.

"Lucy." he whispered.

"She's in there?" Gray whispered back.

Natsu nodded and prepared himself for the attack as Salamander undid the last lock and flipped the lid open and smiled.

"Well hello there. How was your nap?" he asked the content of the chest (Lucy), "You're gonna have to take another though. Can't have you making a ruckus before we get to our destination."

He pulled a syringe full of a clear liquid out of his side back and held it up for all to see. Natsu's eyes narrowed when he heard the muffled screams in the chest. Salamander laughed and slowly lowered the syringe into the chest. Natsu couldn't hold it back anymore. Ruby red scales surfaces on his body and he exploded from his hiding spot and nailed Salamander in the face with a flaming fist.

" **Fire Dragon Iron Fist**!"

Salamander slammed hard into the door and was momentarily dazed. Natsu leaned over the chest and saw Lucy's frightened form laying in its confines, tied and gagged.

"Lucy!" he exclaimed, "I found you!"

Lucy squeaked urgently as a shadow blocked out the light behind him. Natsu whipped around and glared at Salamander who was standing behind him, poised to strike with his syringe.

"You did this to Lucy?" he growled.

"Of course I did! Her father hired me to find his daughter and bring her home! I'm just doing my job."

"Well you're gonna need to find a new job because in case you didn't know, it's illegal to kidnap people." Natsu growled, heat flaring off him.

"Do I look like I care, boy? You should just go mind your own business." he thrusted his syringe at Natsu.

However, the fire half-dragon wasn't taking any crap today and grabbed Salamander's wrist and ignited his fist making Salamander drop the syringe and yell in pain.

"You made it my business when you took someone I cared about against their will." he snarled, "Now I'm gonna make you pay for all the trauma you put Lucy through with some added interest!"

Heat funneled around his mouth as he drew a long breath. Salamander didn't look sure of what he was doing, but he knew that it would be bad news for him and tried to struggle out of Natsu's death grip, but to no anvil.

" **Fire Dragon ROAR**!"

A funnel of flames surged from Natsu's mouth and swallowed Salamander and swept him far off and crashed him through the cart wall. The power of the attack actually destroyed the whole back end of the cart, sending bits of flaming clothes, papers, and wood in all directions. Unfortunately for Salamander, Natsu was far from finished with him. He was just getting started.

Let's just say, by the end of Natsu's rampage the Salamander was going to be in the hospital for a long time for third degree burns and over a dozen broken bones. The flames swirling around Natsu like a cyclone evaporated with his draconic scales and rage. When it did he was hug attacked from behind by none other then Lucy. She had her face buried in his scarf and was sobbing uncontrollably.

"I didn't think you were coming!" she sobbed, "I thought I was a goner!"

Natsu rapped his arms around Lucy in a gentle hug. "Why'd you think that? We're friends aren't we?"

"But you...said you didn't like me."

"..." Natsu drew a breath, "I'm sorry Lucy. I don't know what I was sayin', but I didn't mean it. I like you. A lot. You're a good friend, and I was a jerk. You'd have more right to hate me then I would you."

"I could never hate you Natsu." Lucy said, meeting his gaze, "We're friends aren't we?"

"Hey! Don't mock me Luce!" he protested.

"Sorry. But thank you for saving me."

"I always got your back Luce."

"And I've got your's." she smiled back.

"Lucy...I wanted to ask you-"

"Oi flame for brains! Quit flirting, we've gotta go!" Gray shouted.

"Why?" Lucy asked.

"Natsu's attack destroyed the luggage cart and the old man was true to his word about notifying the authorities! We've got Rune Knights coming in hot!"

"Oh crap! Come on Lucy!" Natsu exclaimed pulling the blonde mage along, "We've gotta run!"

"WHY ME!?" she cried.

"Because we're your friends." Natsu smiled over his shoulder, "And I couldn't think of anyone I'd rather run for guards with."

Lucy's cheeks were momentarily dusted with a light pink before she laughed.

"Yeah! They aren't gonna catch us!" she laughed, running ahead of him, "Come on Natsu! You're gonna get caught!"

 **Back at Fairy Tail**

 **and back to**

 **3rd person Lucy's POV**

"Are you sure you want to leave? You're both welcome here." Mira grinned.

Natsu and Lucy were ready to set off back on there adventure. The whole guild seemed disappointed they were leaving instead of joining the guild. But then again, they probably weren't going to find Natsu's soulmate by staying in a guild. And as much as Lucy loved Fairy Tail, she wanted to leave the horrible memory of being kidnapped behind.

"That's cool, but we have some things to take care of. Maybe we'll come back when we're done." Natsu said, trying to sound optimistic.

"Good luck on your quest. I hope you find what you're looking for and return safely." Erza said formaly.

"Yea, Flame princess over there still owes me that fight." Gray smirked.

"You're on captain underpants! I'm fired up!" Natsu shouted.

Lucy chuckled. "Well we'd better go now. Thanks for the information and the supplies!"

"Not a problem my dear." Makarov smiled, "It isn't everyday you get to go on such a grand adventure. Look out for each other okay?"

"You got it Gramps." Natsu grinned, slinging an arm over Lucy's shoulder, "No one's gonna kidnap Lucy again while I'm around!"

Lucy's cheeks were momentarily dusted pink before she answered.

"Same goes for me." She grinned, "We'll have each other's backs the whole way."

"Good to hear Lucy." Makarov nodded, "Now off you go you brats! You've got a long journey ahead of you!"

"Thanks for everything!" Lucy waved.

Out of all the members of Fairy Tail, Happy was crying the most and shouting 'I'll miss you both!' as they waved at the rowdy mages. The city of Magnolia soon disappeared and was replaced by a vast forest.

"Lucy?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah Natsu?"

"What did you mean by 'information' back there?"

"Oh that's right, you weren't there for that." Lucy remembered, "There's another guild called 'Cait Shelter' on the other side of the mountain range."

"So?" Natsu asked.

"So, Master Makarov told me that there's a half-dragon among them. He doesn't know the details, but I thought we should still check it out."

"Good idea Lucy! I can't wait to meet another half-dragon!" Natsu cheered, "With some luck, maybe he knows where Igneel went. I never got to ask that metal muncher what happened to his dragon parent."

"Maybe if we're really lucky it'll be your soulmate." Lucy grinned.

Natsu cast a sideways look at Lucy. "Why would you think that Luce?"

"Well, there is some logic in thinking that your soulmate could be another half-dragon. And there is a 50% chance that Cait Shelter's half-dragon is a girl." Lucy pointed out.

"True." Natsu grabbed Lucy's hand, "Let's hurry it up then! I'm all fired up to meet this guy or girl, whoever they are!"

Lucy was pulled off her feet by the sheer speed Natsu put on and screamed in protest.

"NAAAATTTSUU! SLOW DOWN!"

 **(That night)**

Thanks to Natsu's hyper sonic running, they made it to the base of the mountains by nightfall. They decided (and by 'they' that means Lucy) to camp out for the night before continuing on the mountains. Looking at the mountains made Lucy shiver a little. No doubt was in her mind that they were going to be dangerous and cold and Lucy wasn't outfitted for the cold weather that would greet them on the mountain.

The fire pit crackled softly with the burning fire that cast a warm glow around the makeshift camp. Lucy was still working on her makeshift whip and was almost finished.

"Lucy?" Natsu asked, uncharacteristically quietly.

Lucy looked up from her project. "Yeah?"

"I wanted to ask you something when we rescued you from that Salamander guy." Natsu admitted.

Lucy's heart momentarily stopped. What was he going to ask her? Was he going to confess something? What if he thought she was too weak to help him? What if-

"Do you think I'm...a monster?" He asked, hesitant with the last part.

The more Lucy looked at the pink haired half-dragon, the more she noticed how...damaged he looked. The expression on his face was something between 'kicked puppy' and 'scolded child' and Lucy didn't think that suited him at all.

"A monster? Where's this coming from? Why would you believe I thought that?" she asked gently.

"I'm not human and I dragged you away from your life for my own selfish intrests."

"You're not actually having second thoughts about letting me come, are you?"

"..."

"Natsu...I'm not going to lie about this but, at first, I'll admit it was a lot to take in and there were moments these last few days that I wish I hadn't left, but it wasn't because of you, it was because I left my sick friend to look after our store while I was off on adventures." Lucy drew a deep breath, "And I'll admit, I thought you were a bit weird when you first told me, but it wasn't the secrets you told me that made me think that. It was that you told me in the first place."

Natsu glanced up at the blond girl. "Really?"

"Yeah. You're annoyingly upfront about everything and...I haven't been."

Now it was Lucy's turn to look like the kicked puppy. What she said wasn't a lie. She'd been keeping an earth-shattering secret from Natsu, who had been so up front with her about his own equally earth-shattering secret. And it made her feel bad.

"...That's okay you know." Natsu said, suddenly, "You don't have to tell me everything about yourself. You're aloud your secrets."

"But you-"

"I chose to be upfront about mine."

"...Why? We'd just met. So why tell me such big secrets?"

Natsu thought for a moment. "I guess it's because you seem trustworthy. There's just something about you that makes me feel like I can tell you anything."

Lucy mulled those words over in her mind. Did he really trust a girl he just met so much that he'd reveal secrets that Lucy herself would have a hard time telling her closest friend? Honestly with all that had happened, it felt like they met years ago instead of days. Although she wasn't sure she'd admit it outloud, Lucy trusted Natsu more then she trusted herself.

"Don't feel obligated to tell me your secrets Luce. You can tell me when you want to." Natsu assured her, "You can trust yourself you know."

"Did I say that outloud?"

"Nah. I could see the self doubt written on your face."

Lucy chuckled. "You know, you're a lot smarter then you look Natsu."

"Hey! Are you saying I look dumb!"

"No, I'm saying you act dumb. That's totally different." she teased.

Natsu stared at her for a moment the stood up and approached her. Since she was still sitting, he towered over her. A mischievous smile spread on his face and he pinned her to the ground.

"Well, I'm just going to have to punish you for calling me dumb." He smirked, "Prepare to be tickled to death!"

Lucy had laughed harder in those five minutes of tickle torture then she had in her whole life. How Natsu figured out Lucy was ticklish was beyond her, but he seemed to know all the spots that tickled the most. And he didn't stop until she was begging for mercy between her deep gasps.

"You *gasp, gasp* are cruel *gasp* Natsu." Lucy said between gasps of breath.

"I know I am, but you were asking for it!" Natsu smirked again, "If you aren't careful I'll do it again."

"Try and I'll Lucy kick you to the moon!"

That got him to stop, and he scooted back to his place on the other side of the fire. I guess seeing the might of the dreaded Lucy kick on the Salamander was enough to make him permanently wary of its almighty power. Lucy smirked victoriously and resumed her work.

 **Later...**

After the talk, things were pretty mellow for a bit. Lucy and Natsu laid in the grass and she tried to point out the constilations to him. But with Natsu being Natsu, he didn't understand at all. He kept complaining that none of the constilations looked anything like the things they were meant to represent and they kinda gave up on stargazing.

Natsu soon fell asleep and Lucy was drifting off as well when something rapped around her waist. She flinched but soon realized it was just Natsu who had reached out and grabbed her in his sleep and was now hugging her waist like a teddy bear. Lucy stared quizzitivly at the sleeping half-dragon, secretly wondering what he was doing until he groaned in his sleep. Like he was having a nightmare.

"Please...Lucy...don't go." He muttered pleadingly.

He was having a nightmare about her leaving? Lucy's gaze softened and she twisted so she was on her back and started stroking Natsu's hair. It seemed to calm him down significantly.

Why he was having a nightmare about her leaving was a bit of a mystery to her...

 _Igneel._ she thought sadly, _When he left it must have effected Natsu a lot. He's probably afraid of loosing someone he cares about again._

Lucy frowned to herself. Who would have thought that behind such a carefree smile was the fear of being left alone? Lucy felt a ping of sympathy for the half-dragon. She'd experienced something similar as a child. But, Natsu had said that Igneel vanished 7 years ago. Where had he been until now?

Lucy glanced at Natsu's peaceful face. How long had he been all alone? Lucy knew what it felt like to loose a parent, but at least she still had some people to comfort her and stay by her side even if it was only for a little while. Natsu had no one.

Lucy settled down in Natsu's warm grasp and continued mindlessly stroking his hair until she had drifted to sleep.

 **The next morning...**

Lucy woke up with the sun shining gently on her face and Natsu staring at her. Lucy's mind, still foggy with sleep, slowly processed the position they were in. Her face flushed red as she bolted upright (though was momentarily dizzy).

"Morning Luce!" Natsu greeted.

"Morning Natsu..." She replied, "Sleep okay?"

"Yeah, that was the best sleep I had in a long time." he grinned, "Quick question though. Why was your hand in my hair?"

Lucy blushed again. "Last night you looked like you were having a nightmare and stroking you hair calmed you down."

Natsu stared at Lucy for a second before standing up, his face a little redder then a fire dragon's should be. Even a half Fire Dragon.

"T-Thanks." he stuttered, running the back of his head sheepishly, "I usually have nightmares a lot..."

"Ever since Igneel disappeared?" she asked, grimly.

"...Yeah." Natsu admitted, "How'd you know?"

"You were muttering in your sleep for me not to go. So I assumed that you were afraid of being left alone."

"..."

Lucy smiled softly. "Just so you know. I'm not going to disappear like that."

"Good. I wouldn't want you to." Natsu smiled sadly, "It's be too quiet without your shouting."

"I DONT ALWAYS SHOUT!"

Natsu covered his ears. "OW! TOO LOUD! I HAVE ENHANCED HEARING LUCE!"

"Sorry." She said sheepishly, "I'll see if I can find and fishing holes so we can get some breakfast."

"But didn't Fairy Tail give us provisions?" Natsu asked pointing at the bags.

"They did, but I want to save those for when we're crossing the mountains. I don't know how long it'll take and I don't want to risk running out of food."

"Good point."

A couple of hours later, the sun was high in the sky and Natsu and Lucy had found a small stream that was full of fish. It was shallow enough that they could stand in the water (even though it was ice cold) and grab the fish out of the stream. Naturally, Natsu caught four times as many fish as Lucy did since he had better reflexes then her. Natsu grilled up the fish and they feasted on rainbow troat for breakfast until they were full.

Once he was done, Natsu wiped his hands on his pants and stood up, a look of excited determination on his face.

"Now let's climb a mountain!"

...

 **A/N: NaLu fluff! The whole 'afraid of being alone' thing is actually one of my personal theories about how Igneel's disappearance effected Natsu. And since Lucy is obviously a person of great significance to him, it would make sense that Natsu's scared of loosing her. Personally, I think that's why he breaks into her apartment all the time. To make sure that she didn't vanish like Igneel did.**

 **I could be over thinking this, but I think it's kind of sweet -w-**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I am so so so sorry for those previous versions of these chapters. But thank you for the input you've all given me on fixing it, it feels good knowing people care about and appreciate my writing (even if it can be crap some times).**

Mt. Hakobe was not as hard to climb as Lucy had originally thought. It had a multitude of hiking and travel trails for her and Natsu to use as they crossed, however...

"WHY IS THERE A BLIZZARD IN THE MIDDLE OF SPRING!?" she shouted over the wind, her teeth chattering.

"Mt. Hakobe is always like this!" Natsu called over the wind, "It's a lot worse in the winter!"

"How do you know!?" Lucy asked.

"..."

Natsu must have come here before during those 7 years on his own. Lucy felt guilty for asking and kept quiet, trying to keep up with the half-dragon's quick pace while fighting against the heavy wind that beat on her relentlessly. The cold was seeping all the way down to her bones. Lucy felt like she was going to freeze to death, all while Natsu was totally okay. Being a walking furnace must have its perks at times like this. Finally Lucy couldn't take it anymore and thumbed through her silver keys with numb, shaky fingers until she found the key she was looking for.

" **O-Open! Ga-Gate of the Clo-Clock: Horologium!** " she summoned.

The key glowed and the clock spirit in question appeared. Lucy muttered a quick thank you and climbed inside the spirit's chest cavity. Natsu glanced back at Lucy and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Are you sure you're using your spirit the right way?" he asked, dully.

"It's too cold out there!" she whined, "I'm not a walking furnace like you are Natsu!"

Horologium quoted her and Natsu looked at her again.

"Why is can't I hear your voice Lucy?"

"The glass is one way. I can hear you, but you can't hear me. Horologium quotes anyone who's inside him." Lucy explained.

Natsu shrugged and continued walking up the mountain, Horologium following after him as Lucy instructed. The walk went on for about another thirty minutes rather uneventfully until a tidal wave of snow washed down from the summit.

"AVALANCHE!" she shouted, panicked.

The sheer volume of the snow swept Horologium off his feet and Natsu along with him. Being tossed around in the clock spirit's chest cavity like a salad was not Lucy's idea of a good time, when it stopped, she was unfortunately in a rather uncomfortable position on the head. For once she was kind of thankful that Horologium reached his limit and vanished.

Kind of.

Without the clock spirit to keep her warm, Lucy was reintroduced to the harsh weather of Mt. Hakobe. She was really wishing that she had a parka or at the very least a wind breaker. Her white and blue tank top and blue skirt were cute, but they were very impractical for subzero temperatures and heavy snow. How she didn't have frost-bite yet was a mystery, but it was one she didn't mind too much.

"N-N-Natsu!" she called over the wind.

Lucy wrapped a (snow covered) blanket from the backpack tightly around herself and scanned the new layer of snow for a splash of pink hair. Unfortunately she found none.

"NATSU!" Lucy called again.

This time, the snow a couple yards off exploded and the half-dragon in question dragged himself half-way out of the new hole coughing and sputtering. He locked eyes with Lucy and relief momentarily washed over his face, before a look of surprise.

"Lucy...you!" he shouted urgently, but some of his words were whipped away by the wind.

"Huh?" she asked.

"Be...you!" he repeated, pointing in her direction.

Lucy was still confused about what Natsu was being so urgent about until a shadow loomed over her. Slowly Lucy looked behind her to see the towering form of a Vulcan standing over her.

"Oh...'behind you'..." she realized, a little too late.

The Vulcan's eyes lit up like a couple of light bulbs. "Woman!"

"Oh no..." Lucy muttered.

The Vulcan made a grab for her, but she managed to scramble away just in time. Her numb hands fumbled for her keys, and picked up the closest Zodiac key she could get.

" **Open! Gate of the Crab: Cancer**!"

The gold key glowed and accompanied by the chime of a doorbell, the hairstylist crab spirit appeared.

"How would you like your hair done today-ebi?" he asked, snipping his scissors.

Lucy pointed at the Vulcan who was coming in hot. "Take that perverted monkey out with style!"

"My pleasure-ebi."

Cancer sped towards the Vulcan and fast as lightning lashed out with his scissors. The Vulcan was left with a stylish new hair style and seemed fairly happy with it, but still was coming at Lucy. When Cancer tried to stop him in his tracks again, the Vulcan knocked him out of the way with a hard sweep of its oversized gorilla arm and the connection between Lucy and Cancer was severed. Lucy didn't have enough time to dodge the Vulcan a second time and was grabbed and slung over the Vulcan's shoulder like a sack of potatoes and carried off.

Lucy pounded on the Vulcan's back as hard as she could and squirmed relentlessly, but the perverted monkey had a tight hold on her and wasn't letting go anytime soon.

"LUCY!" Natsu shouted, scrambling out of the snow and trying to catch up.

"NATSU!"

He had caught up enough for them to just brush fingertips, but the Vulcan took a surprising leap and they were torn away from each other.

 **later in the Vulcan's cave**

Today was just not Lucy's day was it? First there was a blizzard, then an avalanche, and now she got kidnapped (for the second time in three days) by a perverted monkey. Could today get any worse? Probably if she said that out-loud.

The Vulcan was whooping and hollering around the cave thumping the ground with its over-sized hands. For some odd reason, Lucy found her thoughts drifting to Natsu. Would he be able to come to her rescue again? Maybe, knowing him he was tracking her at that moment. Would she depend on him? No. She didn't want to be a liability to him, needing to be saved all the time.

Lucy stood up and cast off the blanket that she had tightly rapped around her shoulders. The Vulcan stopped its whatever-the-heck-it-was-doing and looked at her. Lucy grabbed her keys and pointed Taurus's key at him.

" **Open! Gate of the Golden Bull: Taurus**!"

The massive bull appeared with his double sided battle axe in hand...er...hoof? Whatever.

"Cow?" the Vulcan asked, obviously confused by Taurus's sudden appearance.

"Nice body as always Miss Lucy. Moo-re then amazing." the cow spirit said.

Lucy face palmed. "Oh yeah. He's a pervert too."

"Ugho! Don't take my woman!" The Vulcan scowled.

"'My woman'? Those are fighting words." Taurus said.

Lucy watched the stand off with the two animals. She had used Horologium to his limit earlier so she wasn't sure how long her magic could hold out for Taurus. Hopefully it would be long enough to beat the monkey and get out.

"Go Taurus!"

Taurus charged, axe raised high. "I'm moo-re then ready!"

The Vulcan and Taurus clashed in a battle of strength. Until a something flaming came flying at both of them as they fought. And that something was Natsu. He came rocketing into the cave surrounded by a cyclone of fire like he had been while fighting the Salamander.

"WHY THE HELL ARE THERE MORE MONSTERS!?" he bellowed, kicking Taurus in the jaw.

"NATSU! TAURUS IS ON OUR SIDE!"

"The monkey?"

"No! The bull you just kicked!" Lucy exclaimed, "He's one of my spirits!"

Natsu looked between Lucy and Taurus and 'oh'ed. Lucy face palmed and grumbled. He could be such an idiot and not even realize it! And not to mention he knocked Taurus out cold. Oh and the Vulcan was still conscious and not looking very happy.

"Ugho! MY woman!" it protested.

Natsu glared at the Vulcan. If looks could kill, that Vulcan would be seven kinds of dead. Lucy was sure she'd never seen Natsu so furious. Even while he beat the Salamander into the consistency of wasabi.

"Lucy isn't _your woman_." he growled with the ferocity that could only be associated with a rabid animal, "She's mine."

Lucy was feeling several kinds of emotions after those two words. Heck, she was so distracted she didn't even hear Natsu casting spells at the Vulcan and beating it in a much more brutal way then he had the Salamander or when her connection to Taurus severed as he returned to the Celestial Spirit World. What the heck the half-dragon meant when he said she was his, she had no idea, but strangely she didn't mind. Mostly because she had a feeling it was more of a spur of the moment comment then an expression of actual feelings. But the way he had said it was conflicting with that logic.

Lucy realized she should stop thinking about it. If there's one solid fact about Natsu that she knows, it's that he is anything _but_ logical. In a few minutes the Vulcan was defeated and definitely not going to be moving for the next year.

"Lucy are you okay? That monkey didn't do anything perverted did he?" he asked, the red scales that surfaced on his body while he fought fading away.

"No." she answered simply, picking up her blanket and standing, "I'm fine. I could have handled it myself you know."

"Yeah, but what kind of friend would I be if I didn't help you when you needed it?"

Lucy chuckled. "You'd still be one of my best friends, but I don't want you to drop everything for me every time I'm in trouble. I need to take care of myself."

"I know, but you're the first real friend I had since Igneel. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." he admitted.

Lucy's heart skipped a beat for a moment, but she remained as calm as she could. "Thanks Natsu. That means a lot. But like I said. I'm not going anywhere any time soon."

"Good. If you did I'd drag you back anyway."

"Sounds like something you'd do." Lucy smiled, and looked outside, "Dang it. It's nightfall already?"

"It has been a couple hours." Natsu said sheepishly.

"Looks like we'll be staying here for the night." she sighed.

Natsu looked around. "Yeah...hold on a sec."

Natsu disappeared for a moment and came back dragging the unconscious Vulcan behind him like the world's ugliest toboggan and literally gave him the boot. Lucy let out a low whistle as the Vulcan went flying across the pass and crash-landed in the snowbank. Natsu dusted off his hands with a satisfied smirk.

"Nice kick." Lucy complimented.

"Thanks. And no more perverted monkeys tonight." he grinned.

"Thank god. One a day is plenty." Lucy sighed, "Thank you for helping me Natsu, even though I could have totally handled it."

Natsu shrugged. "Hey, you're helping me, so it's only fair."

"The whole point of me helping you is to repay you for helping me." Lucy pointed out, "If you keep helping me, I'll never be able to repay you."

"Then you'd have to stay with me forever." Natsu laughed.

Oddly, that didn't sound so bad. Sure, she'd miss Levy and their quint bookstore, but if she was constantly on the move with Natsu then she could avoid _that_...

"Yo, Earthland to Lucy! You in there?" he asked, snapping his fingers in front of her face.

"Hmm? Yeah, sorry. Just a bit tired." she said, fake yawning, "I'm gonna go to sleep. See you in the morning Natsu."

 **next morning**

How exactly does one describe the feeling of waking up to discover someone cuddling you like a huge teddy bear, and not just someone, but one of your best friends. Lucy didn't know what to think in terms of a single emotion. There was annoyance, embarrassment, and oddly, pleasure. Out of those three at the moment, the strongest was pleasure so she just laid on stone while Natsu buried his face into her back and had his arms rapped tightly around her waist. Even if she did want to move, she wouldn't have been able to with the sleeping half-dragon clinging to her like a lifeline.

Lucy looked outside at the mountain, it was still dark out. It was probably about 1 am. Why she was awake at 1 am alluded her until Natsu groaned behind her. It occurred to Lucy that Natsu must be having a nightmare and that's what woke her up. She smiled sadly at the thought of the pink haired half-dragon behind her and after some effort turned on her back and repeated what she had done the previous night and stroked his hair until his face settled into a peaceful smile. Secretly, Lucy wondered what he was dreaming about. She knew not to press the topic, but that didn't stop her from being at least a little bit curious. Though Lucy had a sneaking suspicion that the nightmares had something to do with loosing her.

Lucy frowned a little. Although she appreciated his concern for her, she was the one that was supposed to be helping him not the other way around. She still was baffled by the comment he had made last night. She was sure it was heat-of-the-moment, but he still called her _his_. Lucy shock her head.

No, he didn't feel that way about her right? He just saw her as a friend. Still, he called her his 'first real friend since Igneel'. Was he alone all those years? How could he still be so kind and cheerful after all that isolation?

The thoughts lingered in her head as she drifted off back to sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Sorry for lack of updates, I was busy these last few days, but I'm back now. I read Chapter 444 of the manga yesterday and right now all I can think is "What the fudge?! I didn't see that coming". Who would have guessed that Zeref lead a double life? Guess the latest chapter explains where he was for the past who-knows-how-many-years. Can't wait for Natsu and the gang to find out the truth, that'll be a chapter to remember.**

 **Sorry, I'm rambling. I've got a couple announcements too:**

 **1) I've decided where they're going after Cait Shelter. They're going back to the town they met in, I've decided to call it "Hajimari" which fittingly means "beginnings" in Japanese.**

 **2) I've FINALLY decided what keys Lucy is going to have. She's going to have the ones from the first season (minus Loke, I've got a plan for him), essentially Taurus, Cancer, Aquarius, Virgo and Sagittarius. The rest she will accumulate over time.**

 **3) I'm going to be also posting a Jerza story that I hope you guys enjoy, so check it out some time. It's called "The One Magic is Meant for Two"**

 **Oh who am I kidding. No one reads these anyway...guess you all who don't read these will find out the hard way...**

 **On with the story :)**

...

When Lucy's consciousness returned to her again, she immediately noticed the absence of a presence behind her. Her chocolate brown eyes cracked open against the bright light of the sun reflecting against the perfect white of the snow outside. She groaned softly and sat up, rubbing her eyes.

Her thoughts drifted back to the absent space beside her. Wasn't there something there earlier? Her sleepy gaze drifted to the entrance of the cave. Sitting quietly in the mouth of the cave was Natsu. He was staring out at the mountains, leaning lazily against the rocks. Wasn't he sleeping next to her last night? Lucy's eyes widened. He was! Her face flushed the same shade of red as a tomato and looked down at her hands in an attempt to hide the offensive color her face had turned.

Why was she so embarrassed? He did it the night before. Lucy guessed she was just surprised that he did it again. What surprised her more was she didn't mind that he did. Must have been because it was so cold and Natsu is really warm compared to the average human. Yeah, that must be it.

"Morning." Natsu said suddenly.

"M-Morning." she replied, stifling a yawn, "How long have you been up?"

"Not long." he answered.

Lucy walked over to the pink haired half-dragon and sat next to him and studied his face. There were distinct dark circles under his eyes and his complexion was paler then usual. Natsu either was lying about how long he was up for or he didn't get much sleep last night. Or most likely, both.

"You sleep okay?" Lucy asked gently, "You look tired."

"I'm fine." he replied, a little too quickly.

"Nightmares again?"

"..." Natsu was silent, "Yeah."

Lucy scooted so she was facing him. "Want to talk about it?"

"No."

"Okay." she said, not wanting to press the topic farther then her friend was comfortable with, and stood up, "Want some breakfast?"

Natsu perked up at the mention of food. "YEAH!"

Lucy chuckled and started rooting through the pack and pulled out some rapped meat. Natsu quickly lit a fire and the meat was cooked in thirty seconds, and for Natsu was gone in just as long. Lucy looked out at the mountain the whole meal. Mostly it was to watch for weather and Vulcans. The last thing she wanted was a repeat of yesterday.

"The weather cleared up nicely." Natsu commented.

"Yeah. Good traveling weather."

Natsu stood up. "We should get going before the weather gets bad again. The breaks in the weather don't last long."

Lucy hastily packed up and slung the bag over her back. "Then let's not waste any time and go!"

This time Lucy was the one to grab Natsu's hand and pull him along. The role-reverse was short-lived however when Natsu rocketed ahead of Lucy and was almost literally dragging the blonde through the snow. If she wasn't awake before, she was now. Getting dragged through four foot snow drifts at 15 miles an hour is a rather rude wake up call.

Before she knew it, Natsu stopped suddenly and Lucy face-planted into the snowbank. She sat up spitting snow and was about to ask Natsu what was wrong when he ducked down and pulled her back down.

"Are you sure you're going the right way? My feet are ice cubes." a female voice complained.

"This is the way that Cobra specified, so quit your complaining Angel and keep walking." ordered a more mature male voice.

"Why can't I just run ahead and take 'em out?" a gruff voice muttered crossly.

"Because Racer we need the element of surprise in order for our plan for Cait Shelter to be a success." the mature voice said.

Lucy tensed. These people were targeting Cait Shelter? Natsu didn't look like he like it either and silently stalked around the snow bank and Lucy followed in suit. They stalked around the dangerous group and Lucy was beginning to think they were out of the woods when a figure zipped past them and barred their path. Natsu tensed and growled at the man.

He had blonde hair and was dressed like a track racer. The look in his eyes (even though he had a vizor on) though was enough to send shivers up Lucy's spine because it certainly wasn't a friendly look.

"Well well, if it isn't Natsu." the man smirked, "And a pretty girl too."

"Out of our way Racer," Natsu growled, "or I'll pound you."

Behind them someone chuckled in amusement. "Still violent as ever. It's good to see you again, son of Igneel."

Natsu was trembling with rage at this point, his scales flashing in and out under his skin. Lucy finally decided to step up and defend her friend.

"You heard him! Let us pass!" she ordered, trying to sound confident.

The white haired lady in the back of the group laughed mockingly. "As if we'd let the half-dragon get away again."

The man with the strange (and slightly scary looking) staff stepped forward towards Natsu. "My offer still stands."

"Screw you and your 'offer'. We both know what you really want my power for." he scowled.

Staff man sighed in annoyance and nodded at Racer, who was still behind them. Lucy raised a puzzled eyebrow, but quickly realized what he was signaling for and grabbed Natsu's arm and pulled him out of the speedy man's path before he could make the capture. The inertia of the sudden movement caught Natsu off guard and he tumbled down on top of Lucy in the snow.

The man sighed again. "You're making this harder then it has to be. Submit and join us Natsu. Your power will never be shunned here in the Oracion Seis."

Lucy's blood ran cold. The Oracion Seis is one of the corner stones of the Balam Alliance, in other words one of the three top guilds in the magic underworld. And they wanted Natsu to join them? What did they mean by shunned?

There were five people in total, one was asleep, but Lucy believed that that fact was to their benefit. But the four that were conscious didn't look like they were going to be an easy fight. Lucy's hand hovered over her keys and her whip, preparing for the attack. Natsu (who had long since gotten off of her) was standing ready for battle against the dark mages.

The staff man didn't look too overly enthused to fight. "If you want to be so stubborn, we have no choice but to recruit you by force."

That was the trigger that Lucy needed and she pulled out a key. " **Open! Gate of the Golden Bull: Taurus!** "

The spirit in question appeared and the imposing threats took a momentary step backwards in shock.

"This chick's a Celestial Wizard like Angel!" Racer commented.

"And she possesses some of the Golden Zodiac keys. Those should be worth a lot of money, oh yeah!" the blocky man cheered.

"Taurus, create an avalanche!" she ordered.

"Right away Moooiss Lucy!" he shouted, swinging his axe.

Right now, the group was standing off in a ridge pass. The soaring cliffs were topped with a good twelve feet of snow so when Taurus's axe made contact with the stone, a tidal wave of snow rained down on them. Natsu pulled Lucy closer to him and flattened themselves against the wall as the avalanche swept the Oracion Seis away and buried them under it. When it stopped, Natsu grabbed Lucy's hand and started running. As they did, Lucy dismissed Taurus.

"Good thinking Lucy!" he cheered over his shoulder, "Let's go while we can!"

Soon, the Oracion Seis was left in the dust...or snow...and the altitude decreased as the pair descended down the side of the mountain. The next hour went by rather quietly, but was occupied by much over the shoulder checking. Natsu utterly refused to leave Lucy's side the whole time. He said that it was because he was worried that the Oracion Seis would more then likely try to target her in order to force him to join. Lucy would be lying if she said she wasn't concerned for Natsu. Whatever history he had with the Oracion Seis was very rocky and he obviously didn't want to talk about it.

"Natsu, you know if you ever want to talk to me about something, you can. We're friends right?" she asked.

"Of course we're friends Lucy! I just don't want you to get caught up in my business."

"Little late for that I'm afraid. What did those guys mean when they said 'shunned'?"

Natsu was silent for a moment. "I don't want to talk about it."

Lucy took that hint to stop pressing the subject and left it alone. The rest of the walk out of Mt. Haboke was in awkward silence and that brought on unwanted thoughts into Lucy's head.

Natsu was clearly keeping something from her, she wasn't at liberty to talk but it concerned her nonetheless. The Oracion Seis had mentioned several things that shocked Lucy. One, they were trying to _recruit_ Natsu. Two, they clearly had met before and probably on no better terms then they did here. Three, they knew that Natsu was a half-dragon and that Igneel was his father and they apparently have some plan for Natsu's power. And more startlingly, four, they said that Natsu had been shunned.

The thought that the cheery half-dragon would ever be shunned was unthinkable to her. Natsu seemed like a person that anyone would instantly like so the reason alluded her to why he would be shunned. But maybe it wasn't his personality that resulted in a snubbing from society. No. Lucy had a theory that it was something that he couldn't control.

His genetics.

To most people the idea that Natsu's father was a dragon would generate one of two reactions.

Terror or disbelief.

Either reaction however would end with Natsu being cast out by others and ignored.

Lucy's heart pinged with sympathy. She knew a thing or two about being ignored by others, so she could understand why Natsu didn't want to talk about it.

After another week of uneventful hiking, the cold weather slowly subsided and the pure white snow was replaced by soft green grass and leafy trees.

"So where from here?" Natsu suddenly asked, breaking the silence between them.

Lucy dug through her pocket and pulled out a map that Makarov had Mira draw for her.

"Um...we go this way." she said, veering left.

...

After a series of twists, turns, dead-ends, and back-tracks Natsu and Lucy finally arrived at a cat shaped building with a sign that read: "Cait Shelter" in big letters. There were people dressed in indian style clothing walking around carrying stacks of papers and baskets of food. Some stopped when Natsu and Lucy appeared.

Lucy felt a little uneasy with the strange gazes the members of Cait Shelter were giving them. Soon an old man with a large feather headdress, holding a bottle of whiskey walked out of the main building. He gave them a strange look, but it dissolved into a warm smile.

"Welcome, travelers! We're the mage guild Cait Shelter. I'm the master of the guild, Roubaul. How can we help you?" he asked.

Natsu quickly answered that question. "We're looking for the guild's half-dragon."

The hustle-and-bustle of the guild halted and they stared at him in miffed shock. Even the guild master was shocked by Natsu's request.

The silence was broken by Roubaul. "I'm sorry to disappoint you young man, but there's no half-dragon's here."

"What! But the old man said there was one here!" Natsu protested.

The two started arguing and as that happened, a blur of dark blue caught Lucy's attention. Her gaze lifted to the sheltered side of the building and saw a little face peaking out from behind it. It was hard to make out, but Lucy was sure it was the face of a young girl. Lucy walked over to her and she shrank away a little bit, her brown eyes wide in terror.

"W-What do you want?" she whimpered.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you." Lucy soothed, "My name's Lucy. What's your name?"

"W-Wendy." she answered, quietly, "But what do you want with me?"

Lucy's eyes widened a little. "Y-You're the half-dragon of Cait Shelter?"

Wendy covered her mouth, shocked by her own outburst and turned tail to run, but ended up tripping over her own feet. Lucy rushed over and helped her up.

"Are you okay?" she asked, "You didn't have to run, Natsu and I aren't here to hurt you."

"Y-You aren't?" Wendy asked, still terrified, "Then why are you here?"

"Well, Natsu might not look it, but he's a half-dragon too." Lucy said, nodding at the still arguing half-Fire Dragon, "We came here because we wanted to see if you knew anything about getting wings."

"Wings?" Wendy's eyes widened, "Those can only be unlocked when the half-dragon realizes his soulmate."

"'Realizes'?"

"Yeah. My mother, Grandine told me that not only does the half-dragon have to find their soulmate, but they both have to realize it. The principal of getting wings relays on it. If the feelings aren't returned by both sides, then the half-dragon won't get both his or her wings."

"So each wing represents the connection between the soulmates?" Lucy mused, "I guess it would be hard to fly with just one wing if the feeling wasn't mutual."

Wendy nodded. "O-Of course I wouldn't know much about finding a soulmate. I've never had one."

"And you won't for a long time Wendy. You're too young to have such relationships." scolded a mature female voice.

Behind Wendy's legs was a white cat in a pink and yellow dress. If Lucy hadn't encountered two talking cats already, then she would have been shocked beyond words, but since she had already had she wasn't shocked.

"Who're you?" Lucy asked.

"I'm Wendy's friend, Carla." the white cat replied.

"Nice to meet you Carla."

The cat nodded at her and just as they did that, Natsu came barreling behind Lucy. His eyes locked onto Wendy who shyed away from his hard gaze, but Natsu's hard onyx eyes turned warm and cheery again in the blink of an eye and flashed his signature toothy grin at her.

"Hiya! I'm Natsu and I'm a half-Fire Dragon." he greeted, "You're the half-dragon of Cait Shelter, right?"

"Y-Yes. I'm half-Sky Dragon."

"Ha! I knew the old man was lying!" he cheered in victory, "So what do you know about getting wings?"

"You incompetent fool! Can't you see that Wendy is just a little girl? She knows little about the concept of 'unlocking the heart' and even less of love. And I will not let her find out more of love until she's older." Carla scolded.

But Natsu kind of ignored the white cat and continued, "Hey Wendy! Fight me!"

Wendy at this point to Lucy, looked like she was completely confused and Lucy couldn't blame her. Natsu's actions confused her sometimes too. The poor girl was probably wondering why it was that the pink-haired half-dragon was demanding she fight him.

"Natsu, she's a little girl. You can't ask her to fight you! Half-dragon or not, she's still young and probably not as experienced in the battlefield as you are." Lucy scolded.

"Aww...but I wanna fight another half-dragon." he whined.

Lucy scowled slightly, "You know that there's a bigger fight coming this way, remember?"

Natsu thought for a moment before his eyes widened and he ran, probably to find Roubaul. Wendy stared after him in confusion and Carla scoffed and muttered something under her breath.

"What are you talking about Lucy-chan?" Wendy asked.

Lucy was reluctant to tell the innocent girl that there was a powerful dark guild on its way to Cait Shelter, but they probably didn't have much time. Lucy took a deep breath and knelt to Wendy's level.

"Wendy, this is going to be really scary, but there's a dark guild coming here right now."

Wendy gasped and was followed in suit with the rest of the guild. Natsu must have told Roubaul the news and the whole rest of the guild heard him. All eyes were turned on Natsu, who looked more serious then Lucy had ever seen him.

"The Oracion Seis?" Roubaul asked, his voice trembling, "They're coming here?"

"Yes, and if my hunch is right they're coming after Wendy." Natsu said grimly.

Wendy tensed at the mention of her name and Carla stood protectively in front of her.

"Why would they be after Wendy?" asked one of the members.

"Because she's a half-dragon. And half-dragons are insanely strong. Any dark guild would want to get their hands on that kind of power. The Oracion are just the first to try to recruit half-dragons."

"And how would you know this?"

"Because about 4 years ago they tried recruiting me." he admitted.

Lucy wasn't terribly shocked, but it was still a blow to the heart that one of the most powerful dark guilds was targeting her friend. The whole guild gasped in shock and started to murmur among themselves. A burning question itched in Lucy's mind so badly that she couldn't not ask it.

"What do the Oracion want with half-dragons anyway?" she asked.

"..." Natsu took a deep breath, "They want to use the power of half-dragons to-"

Suddenly there was an explosion that interrupted Natsu mid-sentance. A rough laugh echoed over their heads. Lucy looked up and was horrified at what she saw. There was a man riding on a massive purple snake that was _flying_. The man's eyes searched the terrified faces as if he was looking for someone. Lucy's eyes widened when she realized that he was looking for Wendy and Natsu. Natsu had already took the liberty of making himself scarce and Lucy had a feeling she and Wendy had to do the same.

"Wendy." Lucy hissed, "Follow me, we need to get you out of here."

Wendy didn't seem to hear Lucy as she was staring slack-jawed in terror at the man on the flying snake. Lucy quickly grabbed Wendy by the hand and darted into the cover of the trees. Lucy sprinted full speed through the woods and soon stopped under a large tree. Wendy was still trembling and tears had started to leak from her eyes and she sank to her knees as her body was wrecked with uneven sobs.

Lucy kneeled next to her and started to rub her back.

"Hey. Wendy, it's going to be okay." she assured.

"N-No. I-It's not! M-My gu-guild was at-attacked and it's all m-my f-fault!"

Lucy grasped Wendy by her shoulders and stared her straight in her eyes.

"It is not your fault. It's those dark mages's faults for going after half-dragons." Lucy said, "We just need to take those creeps out..."

"H-How?"

Lucy sighed, "To be perfectly honest, I don't know. But I won't let them get to you." Lucy extended her hand, "Now let's go and find Natsu."

Wendy nodded and took her outstretched hand. "Yeah, let's go-"

"Found you." chuckled a gravelly voice.

Lucy tensed and instinctively pulled Wendy behind her to shield her.

"It's you." Lucy growled, "Come out where I can see you!"

Another chuckled answered her. "You're a feisty one. I'm only going to ask once. Hand over the half-dragon and I may let you live."

...

 **A/N: Oh~cliffhanger. Bet you guys hate me now. And I bet you weren't really expecting the appearance of the Oracion Seis. To be perfectly honest I wasn't either and I wrote this.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Finally updating! Sorry for the wait, hope it's worth it :)**

Lucy gasped as the man who was hovering over the Cait Shelter guild hall on a giant serpent emerged from behind the trees. Lucy's hand itched toward her keys, if she could distract him long enough Wendy could get away.

"How noble of you." he chuckled.

Lucy froze and stared at him. "What?"

"Sacrificing yourself for the half-dragon, how sickeningly noble of you." he scoffed, "That's what I hate about you do-gooders. Makes me sick."

Lucy grabbed Sagittarius's key and let her magic flow into it. " **Open! Gate of the Archer: Sagittarius**!"

A bell chimed and the horse archer spirit appeared dressed in his usual (and questionable) horse costume. He saluted Lucy and held his bow.

"Howdy do my lady. How can I be of service?" he asked.

Lucy pointed at the man. "Take him out Sagittarius!"

Sagittarius aimed his bow at the Oracion wizard and fired a storm of arrows. However the man was able to dodge all the arrows except for one. The last one he caught with his bare hand and it dissolved in a dangerous looking pink-red mist. He chuckled evilly and discarded the arrow.

"A good effort, but I could hear it all coming." he smirked, "I never got to introduce myself. I'm Cobra, the half-dragon of the Oracion Seis."

Lucy's eyes widened. "H-Half-dragon?"

Cobra chuckled and strolled closer to Lucy until he was about 4 feet from her.

Lucy's mind was reeling. This makes no sense. If the Oracion already have a half-dragon then why do they need Natsu and Wendy?

"I can hear what you're thinking." Cobra laughed, "I'm not exactly an average half-dragon. You're friends are what would be considered 'natural half-dragons', I'm what would be considered an 'artificial half-dragon'." he smirked toothily, "I don't get my power from my genetics. I got it from the half-dragon I killed."

Lucy and Wendy gasped. Both girls were mortified. Was it possible to become a half-dragon by killing another?

"Of course. That is if you contain their power in a lacrama before it dissipates." Cobra smirked.

Lucy's shock subsided and her horrified expression settled into a determined scowl. "You're a horrible person."

The fake half-dragon laughed heartily, "'Course I am. I wouldn't be a dark mage if I wasn't. Give us the kid and I'll let you live."

Wendy was trembling in fright, her brown eyes were widened to the size of saucers in horror. Lucy knew that expression all too well. Her father...wait, she needs to stop thinking. Cobra can hear her thoughts.

"You're actually smart blondie. Too bad you figured it out before you finished your thought. I would have liked something to use against you."

"There's just one thing I don't understand. If you're a half-dragon like Natsu and Wendy, then what the heck does the Oracion want half-dragons for!?" Lucy demanded.

Cobra chuckled again, "I can't reveal our whole plan to you even if in a few minutes you're gonna be dead. If you aren't going to hand over the kid then I have no use for you."

He inhaled deeply. Lucy's eyes widened realizing what he's doing. Quickly she severed her connection with Sagittarius and grabbed Wendy's hand and pulled her down into the bushes.

"He's going to use a breath attack!?" Wendy exclaimed.

" **Poison Dragon's Roar**!"

Lucy pulled Wendy close to her and barrel rolled out of the way just as a funnel of sickly red-magenta mist reduced the spot where the two girls previously were into a sticky puddle. Lucy's eyes widened in horror. How was she going to beat this guy and keep Wendy safe at the same time? Fake or not, Cobra was a half-dragon and after seeing what Natsu could do she knew for a solid fact that a half-dragon's power is no joke.

Lucy pulled Wendy up and pushed her into the forest. "Wendy, find Natsu!"

"Lucy-chan! I can't leave you to face him alone! You're only in danger because of me!"

"Wendy, I'm a mage. Trouble comes with the territory. Cobra is after you, I'll stale him!"

Cobra at that moment exploded through the trees and made a grab for Wendy. Lucy grabbed her whip and lashed it around Cobra's ankle and threw him into the ground faster then she thought she could.

"RUN WENDY!" she ordered.

With tears in her eyes, the little blue-haired girl disappeared into the forest just as Cobra was getting up. He swore and tried to run, but Lucy's whip was still curled around his ankle and he immediately tripped and face-planted into the dirt again. Lucy bit back a laugh. Cobra growled in annoyance and reached for the whip tied around his ankle. Without thinking, Lucy summoned every bit of strength she could muster and started spinning Cobra like a hammer-throw. If her theory was correct, even a fake half-dragon should get motion sickness like Natsu did apparently.

Unfortunately, Cobra managed to get saved by his flying serpent, who pulled him straight out of the grasp of the whip and hoisted him onto its head. Cobra looked like he wanted to brutally murder Lucy for what she did, but she didn't have any time to feel scared for herself when she was slammed in the back by a heavy boot. With a shout of surprise and pain Lucy crashed into the ground and was pinned under the weight of Racer's boot. The speedy man glared down at the Celestial Mage and gritted his boot into the small of her back. Lucy tried to force him off of her but she just wasn't strong enough.

"You're pathetic Cobra. Can't even catch a little girl?" Race rasped.

Cobra scoffed, "Blonde kept getting in the way."

"Still, you should be able to handle a single girl." a snide female voice mocked.

"Shut up Angel."

Angel. They mentioned her before, they said she was also a Celestial Spirit mage too. Lucy continued to struggle under Racer's boot until Cobra took a turn and kicked her in the face. Lucy coughed up a clump of blood and growled.

"Tell us where the Fire Dragon is." Cobra ordered.

"Or what...? You'll kill me?" Lucy choked.

Cobra kneeled down to her level, his hand swirling with his poison mist. Lucy fought down her pure terror as his hand approached her face, but it stopped literally 10 centimeters from the tip of her nose.

"No. I'll torture you until you tell us or you die. Either way, if you don't tell us where he is, your screams of pain will certainly attract him."

Lucy reached for her keys and pulled out Cancer's.

" **Open! Gate of the Crab: Cancer!** "

Cancer appeared in a flash of bright gold light accompanied by the chime of an old door bell. The spirit didn't even ask what she needed and batted the imposing dark mages far enough away for her to regain her footing.

"Thanks Cancer." she said, lowering her heart rate and brandishing her whip, "I can take it from here."

The spirit nodded and vanished. When Cancer was gone, Angel laughed.

"You must be suicidal if you think you can take on half of the Oracion Seis on your own without your spirits!" she laughed.

"It'll do you good to not underestimate me." Lucy scowled.

Angel finally recomposed herself and waved off the boys. "Go find the twerps. I'll handle little Ms. Cocky."

They nodded and they both retreated from the imposing fight. Lucy started to go after them.

"Oh no you don't!" she shouted.

A flash of light grabbed her attention and Lucy ducked just in time to avoid a potentially deadly blast of sand. Lucy looked up from the ground to see another man standing next to Angel, who had a Zodiac sign on his outfit.

Lucy gasped. "Scorpio!? You have Golden Zodiac Keys?"

Angel laughed evilly, "Do you still think you can take me on without your spirits?"

Scorpio blasted at Lucy again, she leapt up into the air just barely vaulting the attack. Her landing was less then graceful, but she made it out relatively unscathed except for the few scratches from the stray grain of sand.

"I know I can. Unlike you, I'm not going to hide behind my spirits! Celestial Spirits are living people like us! **THEY ARE NOT SHIELDS!** "

"You _must_ be suicidal to think that." Angel said, ordering Scorpio to attack again, "And you're wrong about Celestial Spirits. They don't feel anything, they're exactly as their name states. They're spirits. Unfeeling, non-animate, spirits."

Lucy noted Scorpio wincing at the comment as she dodged. Her anger towards the enemy mage grew.

"No. You're wrong! Celestial Spirits may not be exactly human, but they can still feel pain, anger, sadness, happiness, and love. Just like us." Lucy lashed at Angel with her whip, "It makes no difference to me that they're spirits!"

Lucy's whip wrapped around Angel's arm. The arm that had Scorpio's key in its hand. Lucy pulled hard and Angel dropped the key to the grass. While Angel was distracted by this Lucy charged and kicked her in the face. The kick broke Angel's concentration and Scorpio disappeared back to the Celestial World. Angel growled and drew another Gold Key.

"Not bad, but let's see how you fair against this! **Open! Gate of the Ram: Aries!** "

"I'm sorry! What can I do for you?" the ram spirit whimpered, clearly terrified of her master.

Angel pointed at Lucy, "Eliminate her Aries!"

" **Wool Bomb**!" Aries cast.

A tidal wave of pink wool rushed forth from Aries's small pale hands and directly at Lucy. Lucy dodged just by the skin of her teeth, only to have to dodge again. As she dodged, Lucy was racking her brain still thankful that the Poison half-dragon wasn't there to listen in on her thoughts. She'd heard of someone that possessed Aries's key, but who was it?

Lucy gasped and stumbled. Unfortunately she was struck by a wall of wool. However, it was more of a pushing attack that forced Lucy into a tree trunk then a deadly attack like Scorpio's and Lucy quickly recovered.

"Aries...wasn't she one of Karen's spirits?" Lucy asked. **(A/N: My pen name isn't based off of this character ^-^)**

Angel patted Aries's head roughly, "That's right. Of course, since I killed her, this is my spoils of war."

Lucy's heart dropped through the floor. This woman in front of her, brutally murdered Karen out of cold blood and didn't look the least bit remorseful. Lucy had heard that Karen wasn't the kindest of all key holders, but she must have been at least minimally better then Angel.

Angel took Lucy's surprise as an opportunity to attack. "Aries, attack!"

The ram spirit charged at Lucy and she forced a stream of wool at Lucy. She blocked it with her forearm and grasped Aries's oncoming attack and tore through it.

"I'm sorry! I have to obey my owner!" Aries apologized.

The battle was pretty evenly matched for a while. Lucy was proud of herself in being able to hold off the Zodiac Spirit for so long, but her stamina was beginning to wane. She knew she had to wrap this up before she ran out of strength. Suddenly there was another bright flash and a blast. A laser-like attack shot right through Aries's stomach and drilled through Lucy's left shoulder. Lucy cried in pain, dropped to one knee and coughed up a clot of blood. When she looked up, she saw Aries's pained expression as she dissolved back into the Celestial World in splotches of gold light.

"Aries!" Lucy shouted.

"I'm sorry!"

That was the last thing Aries said before disappearing completely, leaving Lucy staring shell-shocked at Angel, who was standing next to a chisel spirit. Tears of sadness and rage streamed from Lucy's eyes as she pieced together what had happened. Angel had summoned the chisel spirit. And ordered it to shoot Lucy through Aries.

Lucy's rage bubbled to the point of bursting.

"You dare call yourself a Celestial Spirit mage? How could you...HOW COULD YOU ATTACK YOUR OWN SPIRIT!?" Lucy screamed.

"What? She can't die." Angel shrugged.

"No. But she can feel pain. Didn't you see that expression on her face while she was disappearing? She was in pain! Pain that YOU caused!"

"I still hit my mark. Though a little off, with an injury like that you won't be able to fight."

Lucy scowled and stood up clutching her shoulder which was now bleeding profusely. The pain was unlike anything Lucy had ever felt before but she fought through it.

"I'm not giving up." Lucy growled, shocking Angel, "I will fight to my last breath if I have to! You're going to pay for what you did to Aries!"

Angel scoffed and pointed another key at Lucy. "It doesn't matter. I still have plenty of power left and you're running low. You're chances of winning are exactly zero."

Lucy growled and stood straighter.

"Still got some fight in you? Fine then. Let's see how well you fight against yourself. **Open! Gate of the Twins: Gemini!** "

In a puff of pink smoke a perfect replica of Lucy stood, but with a sly smirk on her face and without the injury to the shoulder. Lucy groaned inwardly. Just how many Zodiac keys does Angel have?

"Gemini, you know what to do." Angel ordered, "Destroy her!"

Gemini rushed Lucy and landed several blows before she could even process what was happening. This spirit was obviously going to be tougher then the other two. Unlike Scorpio and Aries, Gemini looked like they really wanted to hurt her.

Lucy crashed through the foliage and into a stream. The blood on her shoulder immediately washed off and swirled in the water around Lucy like a red mist. Gemini broke through the bushes followed by the chisel spirit and a smirking Angel who looked extremely pleased with how this battle was going. Lucy knew she would be better off summoning her spirits, but she immediately dismissed the thought. She needed to fight this battle without her spirits. Though, the idea of having Taurus's strength or Sagittarius's insane archery skills was a pleasant one.

Gemini continued beating Lucy around in the stream since the water was a hinderance to the wounded Celestial Mage. Finally, Lucy was laying battered and bruised in the shallow stream.

"Ha ha ha! I told you you couldn't win without your spirits!" Angel mocked, as Gemini kicked her again, "Now you're going to be killed by yourself! Don't you just feel pathetic?"

Gemini grasped the chisel spirit by the handle and raised it hight above their head.

"Any last words?" Angel asked, mockingly.

"Release Aries." Lucy growled.

"What?"

"She was treated horribly by her last owner-"

Lucy was cut off when Gemini sliced her good arm with the chisel spirit. The sharp pain wrenched a scream of pain from Lucy's throat.

"Is that any way to ask someone for a favor?" Angel chuckled.

Lucy gripped both her bleeding wounds. "Please...I'm begging you. She deserves to be happy. We Celestial Spirit mages are the only ones that can grant them that happiness."

"For nothing?"

"I'LL GIVE YOU ANYTHING APART FROM MY KEYS! JUST RELEASE ARIES!"

"You're life it is then." Angel smiled darkly, "Gemini, kill her."

Lucy screwed her eyes shut for the blow that would end her life. But it never came.

"Gemini?"

Lucy opened her eyes and looked at the Celestial Spirit ordered to kill her. They were shaking, their eyes blank as if remembering something.

"I can hear a beautiful voice...echoing inside my head..." Gemini said, tears welling in their eyes, "...I can't do it. Lucy loves us from the bottom of her heart. Us Celestial Spirits."

Lucy groaned painfully, "Gemini..."

"OUT OF MY SIGHT! USELESS TRASH!" Angel shouted, cutting her connection to Gemini.

Gemini disappeared with a shout of pain at how violently the connection had been severed. The chisel spirit splashed into the river where Angel picked it up.

"I don't need a spirit to finish you off!" she shouted, "I'll kill you myself!"

Lucy tried to stand up, but her strength had been spent. This was the end for her. She failed. Angel raised the chisel above her head and was about to bring it down...

...

...

...

...

...when she was attacked from behind.

" **Ice-Make: Lance**!"

The attack connected with Angel's back and she screamed in pain before fainting in the stream. Lucy gasped in surprise when she saw who was behind her. Gray had just saved her life. And he wasn't alone either. Erza was there too and a large group of other people she didn't recognize.

"Guys..." Lucy swallowed, "What are you doing here?"

Gray grinned at her, "We're here to help of course."

Happy flew up behind him and pumped a paw in the air. "Aye!"

Lucy laughed breathily in relief as she slipped into blood-loss induced darkness.

 **A/N: Bet you thought Natsu was going to be the one to come to the rescue didn't y'ah? Yeah, not yet. I included the team that was assembled to take out the Oracion Seis because let's be realistic. Natsu's a beast, but even he couldn't take out the whole Oracion Seis on his own even with Lucy and Wendy helping him out.**

 **The way that Cobra became a half-dragon is honestly the only way I can think of that would make the most amount of sense considering that half-dragons get their power through genetics so killing them and trapping the power in a lacrama seems the most logical. After that it's standard procedure for 2nd generation Dragon Slayers, except it's half-dragons instead ^-^**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I have returned from the dead! Sorry I was** **gone so long, I was prepping for going to an event called "Gen Con" and it was amazing! Everyone there was so chill and there were tons of people cosplaying. There were tons of "Doctor Who" cosplays and anime characters. There was a person dressed as Maka from "Soul Eater" two people as Ed from "Fullmetal Alchemist" and a duo dressed as Roy and Riza also from FMA. A multitude of people were dressed as Sailor Scouts from "Sailor Moon" and a lot of people dressed as characters from Fairy Tail and Scout Regiments from "Attack on Titan". Over the last 4 days I was at Gen Con I counted 6 people dressed as Natsu, 4 as Lucy, 2 as Erza, 1 as Gray, and 1 as Mira. In fact I saw four people doing a group cosplay of Team Natsu on Sunday.**

 **Gen Con was awesome. I seriously recommend to anyone who has the time to go next year. It really lives up to its slogan as "the best four days in gaming" and everyone is so amazingly nice I didn't meet one rude person the whole time and it was a lot of fun (even if I was in Writing Seminars most of the time).**

 **So I'm back to writing and hopefully my writing will be a bit better then it was before. Sorry for the hiatus.**

...

Lucy awoke again groggily. Sunlight danced through the leaves of the trees above her as she lay on something soft and prickly. Groaning, she sat up but a pain shot through her shoulder causing her to grip it. Her pale hand brushed cotton bandages. Lucy dully tried to remember what had happened to her when the sound of leaves crunching under feet drew her attention. Lucy looked and saw a person with a familiar head of red hair approaching her from the other side of the clearing.

"Erza...?" she asked groggily.

"Good. You're awake." she smiled, crouching to her level, "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better...but what are you doing here?"

"Master Makarov received a message from Cait Shelter's master that they were under attack from the Oracion Seis. They sent the message to Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus so they're here as well."

"Oracion Seis..." Lucy remembered dully, "Natsu...where is he?"

Erza's expression fell. "We don't know. No one has managed to find him yet."

"What about Wendy?" Lucy asked.

"Cait Shelter's half-dragon? We haven't found her either." Erza sighed, "Why are the Oracion after the half-dragons?"

Lucy struggled to stand. "Natsu has crossed paths with the Oracion before...they wanted him to join them but he refused. I don't know what they want with him and Wendy, but apparently it's something that they can only use real half-dragons for."

"'Real half-dragons'?"

"One of their members...Cobra. He's what he called an 'artificial half-dragon'." she explained, "Whatever they need Natsu and Wendy for can't be good. We have to find them before the Oracion do."

Lucy tried to stand up but Erza clasped an armored hand on her uninjured shoulder and forced her back down, her expression firm.

"You need to rest Lucy, you've done enough for now."

"No. Natsu could be in danger. He's my friend and I can't sit by and do nothing!"

"You took out a member of the Oracion Seis on your own, that's one less person that can find Natsu and Wendy. And you're injured, you're just going to hold yourself and everyone else back."

Lucy shook her head and stood up without Erza forcing her down again. "I'm not going to sit by and watch."

Erza sighed. "I'm not going to change your mind am I?"

"No." Lucy said firmly, "So who else is helping fight the Oracion Seis?"

"An old friend of Gray's named Lyon with Sherry and the Wizard Saint Iron Rock Jura of Lamia Scale and from Blue Pegasus..." Erza cringed, "Hibiki, Eve, Ren, and...Ichiya."

"What about from Fairy Tail?"

"Just Gray, Happy and I." Erza explained, "Most of the guild's stronger members were on jobs and unable to assist currently."

Lucy sighed, "We should find the others. Where is everyone?"

"Looking for the Oracion Seis." Erza said, "Taking them out is first priority."

"Good luck actually doing it." a voice taunted.

Lucy leapt back a good 5 feet as Cobra dropped down from the tree directly above her with a hard thud. Erza **Re-quipped** a sword and pointed it at him and Lucy grabbed her whip.

"Oh how scary." he scoffed sarcastically.

"What-"

"Do I want?" Cobra finished, "Simple. I want you and your friend dead."

Erza screamed in pain behind Lucy. She whipped around and saw Cobra's snake companion sinking its fangs into Erza's arm.

"Erza!" Lucy cried.

The scarlet-haired mage dropped like a sack of rocks when the snake released its grip on her. Lucy lashed her whip at the snake and it backed off enough for Lucy to rush to Erza's side. A sickly purple color was steadily spreading along her arm from where the snake had bit her and it looked like it was causing Erza a large amount of pain.

"That's because it is." Cobra smirked coldly, "Corbellious's bite injected a poison into her system. Your friend's as good as dead."

"You..." Lucy growled.

Suddenly Cobra materialized behind her and kicked her in the side of her ribs. Lucy cried out in pain as her bad shoulder slammed into the ground. Sticky red blood soaked through her bandages and left a red mark on the grass as Cobra lifted her by her throat, a poison mist swirling around his hand. Lucy held her breath to prevent from breathing in the poison. Not like she could breath easily anyway with Cobra grasping her throat.

"You're the one that defeated Angel? She must be more pathetic then I thought." he scoffed.

Lucy knew she had to escape his grasp or both she and Erza would die. But even if Lucy got out of this, how was she going to help Erza? She didn't know any way to expel the poison in her system. Cobra smirked confidently, obviously prying on her thoughts. However his smirk was quickly removed by a quick and hard kick from Lucy. He immediately released her and staggered backwards a few feet grasping his bruised chin.

Lucy was on her knees gasping for precious air for a few seconds before she stood up again. She was rearing to attack Cobra again when an unexpected visitor planted a hard fiery punch on Cobra's face. The poison half-dragon was sent flying into the trees and Lucy cringed lightly at the sight.

"Yo Luce! Where y'ah been?" a cheery voice greeted.

A man wearing a scaly scarf covered in ruby red scales stood before her with a wide, toothy grin on his face.

"Natsu?"

"Lucy-chan, you're alright!" another innocent voice cheered in relief.

Lucy's eyes widened in recognition of the young voice.

"Wendy!"

The half-dragon in question stepped out of the forest with Carla in tow, tears of happiness glittering in her brown eyes. Natsu grinned at the young blue-haired girl.

"Yeah, she managed to track me down while I was trying to find some of those dark mages."

Wendy's eyes locked onto Erza, who had since fallen unconscious from the pain the poison must have caused her. She gasped and ran over to her.

"Oh no! She's been poisoned!" she cried.

Natsu's eye's widened to the size of saucers. "ERZA!? WHAT'S ERZA DOING HERE!?"

"Erza, Gray, Happy, and some other people from other guilds came to help Cait Shelter." Lucy explained.

Wendy smiled with relief. "Thank goodness."

"But more importantly, how are we going to help Erza? I don't know any way we can heal her."

"A-Actually, I can heal her." Wendy admitted quietly.

"EH?!" Natsu and Lucy exclaimed.

"You imbeciles. Wendy is half Sky Dragon." Carla exclaimed, clearly annoyed at their naïvety, "Sky Dragon's can use extensively powerful healing magic."

"Seriously? I never heard of anyone who could use healing magic." Lucy commented, "Do you think you can help her?"

Wendy examined Erza's wound that had gotten a significantly worse in the last few minutes as the poison moved over her shoulder. The half-Sky Dragon's worried expression settled into a determined scowl. Without a word, she extended her hands towards the bite mark as a light blue glow hovered between her hands and Erza's wound. Just as the scarlet-haired mage's pained expression began to settle into a peaceful smile when Cobra emerged from the foliage again. His cold eyes settled on Wendy and Natsu, a sly smirk growing on his face.

"So you finally showed yourselves half-dragons. I guess I should thank you for saving me the trouble of tracking you down again." Cobra smirked.

Natsu growled, his fist lighting aflame. "Lucy-"

"'Stay back while I handle this dweeb'?" Cobra finished, "Great another sickeningly noble loser."

"How did you...!"

"Natsu, he can hear our thoughts." Lucy explained, urgently.

He nodded not taking his eyes off the poison dragon. "Got it. Thanks for the heads up Luce."

"Natsu if you're going to do what I think you're going to do then let me help."

The pink-haired half-dragon glanced briefly at the celestial mage, his hard gaze softening for a moment. "I've got this. You've already helped me out a ton, but this is between me and him so it's not a good idea to interfere."

Lucy froze wide-eyed before nodding.

By then Cobra had reached the end of his patience. "Are you finished saying you lovers' good-byes?"

"WE AREN'T LOVERS!"

Cobra scoffed before charging.

 **...**

 **Natsu's POV**

Natsu pushed Lucy out of the way with his non-flaming hand and threw his flaming fist at Cobra who easily dodged. Natsu growled and front kicked at the dark mage but was also dodged.

"Weren't you listening to your girlfriend? I can hear all your thoughts." Cobra smirked.

"Grrr...then I'll just do this! **FIRE DRAGON"S ROAR**!"

The attack flew true at its target...until that darn flying snake snapped up its owner and flew above it. The attack narrowly flew over Wendy's head causing the young half-dragon to scream in surprise.

"Be careful you moron! You almost hit Wendy!" Carla exclaimed angrily.

Natsu winced. "Sorry Wendy!"

Cobra laughed from above. "Good luck trying to hit me from down there old dragon!"

Natsu was about to shout a defiant insult at the man when something came from behind him and grabbed onto his vest and hauled him into the air. Natsu twisted his head around to find a familiar blue winged cat carrying him skyward.

"Happy!"

"Need a lift Natsu?" Happy smiled.

"Thanks bud! Let's get that jerk!"

"Aye sir!"

Happy's flying speed increased and Natsu readied another flaming punch. As they passed by he thrusted the punch, his enemy casually turned sideways and smirked as the pinkette flew by. The exchange went like that for another few minutes and Cobra had not one scratch on him (apart from the bruise on his chin, where ever that came from).

"You're really slow on the uptake. I can hear everything you're thinking. Face it." Cobra's snake lashed its tail at Natsu and Happy, "YOU CAN'T WIN AGAINST ME!"

The tree trunk sized tail slammed into Natsu's chest like a lead weight and sent Happy spiraling down a few feet. Lucy exclaimed in panic below them before a flash of light followed by a bell chime. Seconds later a volley of arrows flew through the air and at Cobra. He dodged most of them but a few hit the snake and it hissed loudly in pain as red blood oozed from the wounds. Cobra looked like he wanted to murder the Celestial Mage. Just looking at that expression made Natsu's blood boil and he lashed out an attack.

" **Fire Dragon's Claw**!"

This time the unexpected attack made contact with the dark mage's face and he tumbled off the back of his snake companion. Another volley of arrows flew from the clearing but the snake curled around all of them, making its way towards Cobra.

" **Fire Dragon's Roar**!"

The funnel of flames rushed from his mouth at the poison half-dragon. The snake narrowly rescued Cobra, who's feet were singed by Natsu's fire and his jacket was peppered by the arrows that came from below.

Cobra hissed angrily. "This is getting annoying. **Poison Dragon's Claw**!"

Poison mist rained down on the clearing below. On Erza, Carla, Wendy...and Lucy.

"LUCY!" Natsu shouted.

Happy quickly dived below the row of deadly poison.

" **Fire Dragon's BRILLIANT FLAME**!"

The fire swallowed the poison and burned it to smokey vapor. Natsu let out a sigh of relief before looking over his shoulder at his friends below. Lucy was standing next to a man in a horse costume holding a bow loaded with several arrows. Erza was slowly waking up with Wendy sitting next to her with a relieved smile on her face.

He was about to say something to his friends when he was struck from behind. The attack burned like a acid needles stabbing him up and down his back. Poor Happy got the worst of it and bobbed dangerously until he was steadily drifting down to the ground.

"Hey Happy! Get a hold of yourself!"

"Sorry Natsu. My body won't move the way it wants to."

Cobra laughed above them. "That's the effects of my poison. A dragon's poison saps all strength and leaves you to die."

"Darn it!" Natsu growled, "Happy!"

"Aye sir!"

Cobra snickered confidently and stayed where he was. Natsu inhaled deeply and cleared his head of all thoughts and let his body move on its own. When Happy and Natsu had closed in Cobra's eyes widened in shock when he realized that the half-Fire Dragon wasn't thinking anything.

" **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist**!"

Natsu's flaming fist made hard contact with Cobra's cheek and sent him flying again.

"What the!?"

Natsu kicked him hard in the stomach. After that followed with a storm of fire filled attacks, each one hitting its mark.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Natsu let loose a final punch but unexpectedly, Cobra grabbed his fist and stopped it.

"This is a first." Cobra laughed, "Guess I can't use a cheap trick on you."

Cobra's hand turned scaly and reptilian, poison mist steamed from the poison dragon's hand and burned through Natsu's scales to his fist with the same pain as earlier. He immediately recoiled clutching his hand.

"OWWWW! IT HURTS!"

"Now I'm serious! Let's see how strong you really are, son of Igneel."

 **...**

 **A/N: BAH! Sorry if this chapter stinks. I'm going back and reading through it multiple times to make sure it's okay at least. I'm getting the beginnings of a bad case of writer's block. Doesn't really help that I might have picked up a virus at Gen Con either. I'll try my hardest to make these chapters worth the potentially long wait since I'll be going back to school in a few weeks *groans***

 **But hey! Two chapters and Natsu's finally reappeared! That's good, right?**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Hello Universe! Yay! I'm back with another chapter. Sorry if it's crap because I am winging it and seeing where this goes. Anyway, happy announcement!**

 **There have been almost 3,000 views of this story (probably will be by the time this chapter is posted), 12 reviews, 42 followers, and 27 favorites.**

 **This story is my most popular story and honestly one of my favorites to do and I'm so happy that people enjoy this story as much as I enjoy writing it. So I am going to write this thing until the end and the end isn't going to be for a LONG time hopefully if all goes well.**

 **I'm going to try to incorporate as much of the actual story arcs as I can while being true to this story. If you're wondering when I'm going to take Lucy and Natsu back to Hajimari (town where Natsu and Lucy meet in this story for those who didn't read the Author's note in Chapter 7) after their adventure at Cait Shelter.**

 **For all you fans who like Gajeel, don't worry. He will be back. After all I did make Levy and Gajeel a thing here (GaLe for life).**

 **Also any ideas on how I can incorporate different arcs and keep the actual story unique, please feel free to PM me or comment on the story down below.**

 **Thank you for being amazing and enjoy this hopefully not crappy chapter :)**

 **...**

 **Still Natsu's POV:**

Cobra smirked at the pink-haired half-dragon confidently. "Now I'm serious! Let's see how strong you really are, son of Igneel."

The Poison half-dragon was on top of Natsu and Happy almost before they could react. Almost. Happy may be a bit more sluggish then usual, but he could still get out of the way just before Cobra struck Natsu. However, Cobra surprised him with a hard upward kick to the jaw. And it burned worse then it did before.

"You're absolutely pathetic Dragneel! You're the son of the King of Fire Dragons but you can't even fly on your own power!" Cobra taunted, "And you call yourself a half-dragon!"

Natsu ignited his fist and tried to land a blow on the dark mage, but was dodged every time and returned with a stinging blow that slowly chipped away at his strength. Suddenly Cobra seemed to disappear into thin air. Natsu looked around for the dark mage before someone shouted below him.

"NATSU!" Lucy shouted from below, "BEHIND YOU! DUCK!"

He dived just as a clawed hand swiped over his head, then flipped backwards and nailed Cobra in the cheek with a **Fire Dragon's Talon**.

"Thanks Lucy! I owe you one!" Natsu grinned, between attacks, "You shouldn't be here though! It's too dangerous!"

"I DON'T CARE! YOU'RE MY FRIEND NATSU I WON'T LEAVE YOU TO FACE THIS JERK ALONE!"

Cobra landed a surprise hit on Natsu and chuckled darkly. "Oh, I see now. So THAT'S you're weak point...Cubelios!"

On command the serpent sprayed a plume of magenta colored poison mist. That Cobra promptly consumed while Happy, Natsu and everyone below them stared in disbelief.

"H-He's EATING THE POISON!?" Lucy exclaimed from below.

"That can't be good for your health." Happy commented.

Once the mist was gone, Cobra smirked. " **Poison Dragon's...** "

Time slowed down. Natsu recognized exactly what Cobra was doing and Wendy did too.

"BREATH ATTACK!" Wendy yelled.

"Not good!" Natsu growled.

"NATSU GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Lucy shouted.

"Natsu...we can't afford to get hit by that!" Happy groaned, "We're bad enough as it is!"

"What about Erza, Lucy, Wendy and Carla! They're in the line of fire too!"

There was the sound of running down below. Natsu's trained ears picked up the sounds of two pairs of feet running. One small pair and one heavy pair. Probably Wendy and Erza. At least Erza was on her feet again. But what about Lucy!? Natsu glanced below him to see the blonde mage standing alone but strong. The archer spirit she summoned must have reached his limit. What the heck was that girl doing!? She didn't have any way to defend herself against Cobra's breath attack and even worse, she would get hurt and because of him! That's something he couldn't bare to see.

Cobra smirked at Natsu again before letting loose a poison roar...

...

...

...

...

But the attack sailed right past him...

...

...

...

...

...and headed straight for Lucy.

"LUCY!"

Natsu dived between the attack and Lucy. " **Fire Dragon's-**!"

The poison attack however hit Natsu before he could finish his spell and the pinkette swallowed a bit of the poison. The attack halted with them and didn't reach Lucy, but Happy started to sway and steadily descended.

"What's wrong Happy?!" Natsu shouted, as they jerked down towards the forest floor, "Not this again! Get a hold of yourself! Hey!"

They continued to descend but Happy halted the unwanted landing. "Sorry Natsu. My body won't seem to move properly."

"Don't worry about it! I'm feeling it too!" Natsu growled.

"Natsu! Why'd you do that!?" Lucy shouted.

"I couldn't let you get hit, could I? Now get out of here!" he shouted a bit more harshly then he meant to.

Lucy was silent but she obeyed and sprinted into the forest. Inwardly, Natsu breathed a sigh of relief. Cobra couldn't fight him and go after Lucy at the same time, so at least she was safe.

Cobra snickered. "No wonder you haven't found your wings yet."

"What?" Natsu growled, "What the heck are you talking about?"

"Seriously? You must blind if you can't even see what's right in front of you."

"QUIT TALKING!" Natsu shouted.

He threw another punch at Cobra but still missed.

"I can hear your movements." he mocked, "Still, to think that you can move this well even after getting hit with my poison breath...not bad for a half-bake."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A HALF-BAKE!? LAST TIME I CHECKED, YOU WEREN'T FLYING ON YOUR OWN EITHER!"

Cobra chuckled darkly. "That's a side effect of being a 'false' half-dragon. We get all the powers of a natural half-dragon but since we lack the genetics, we don't get the wings. Probably because to get our powers we have to kill a natural half-dragon in cold blood."

Natsu's body tensed angrily. This guy... _killed_ another half-dragon just to get his current powers. That's-

"Despicable? Huh. Can't number how many times I've been called that. I think your girlfriend called me that too."

"LUCY ISN'T MY GIRLFRIEND!" **(A/N: We all wish she was...)**

"YEAH! Natsu would never date a weirdo like Lucy!" Happy agreed.

"I'M NOT A WEIRDO YOU STUPID CAT!" Lucy's annoyed voice shouted from below.

Natsu and Cobra both looked down in surprise. There below them, with one hand on her hip and a disapproving scowl on her face was the Celestial Spirit Mage in question. In her other hand however, was a lit torch. A torch that she must have lit before coming back. Why did she come back after he

Lucy threw the torch up as hard as she could. "NATSU! EAT UP!"

The half-Fire Dragon's eyes lit up greedily as he snatched the torch out of the air and swallowed the flaming end whole and absently savored the hot flavor sliding down his throat followed by the rush of power flowing through his body that took the edge off the poison. With a satisfied burp, he threw the now unlit torch back down and grinned.

"Thanks again Lucy. You just keep comin' through for me today don't y'ah?"

"That's what I'm here for." she grinned.

"Lucy, do you have any fish? Fish would be nice..." Happy groaned.

Cobra snapped back into focus on Natsu just as the half-Fire Dragon was on top of him.

" **Fire Dragon's Wing Attack**!"

Finally, Natsu managed to land a hit and Lucy cheered below him. But then Cobra threw a counter attack of his own and caught Natsu off guard.

"Don't get cocky just because you ate some fire!"

Natsu tried to attack him again but found himself unable to move. "Dam it. My body won't move...!"

Cobra laughed. "The poison has spread through your entire body. Now hurry up and die."

"Wait a minute! Don't you need Natsu for something!?" Lucy shouted below.

"Nah. We just need the blood of one half-dragon to undo the seal." Cobra smirked, "And we already got one."

Lucy gasped. "Wendy!"

Natsu cursed silently as Happy started dropping towards the ground...and Cobra. Then Natsu got an idea. A stupid, potentially deadly idea, but an idea nonetheless and their only shot at victory.

"Happy... drop me!"

The little blue cat gasped. "What are you saying Natsu?! You just said your body won't move!"

"That's why it's time to end this!"

"WHAT ARE YOU PLANNING TO DO?!" Happy and Lucy yelled.

"HAPPY! DO IT NOW!"

The winged cat hesitantly obeyed and released Natsu's vest. Gravity took over and the half-dragon dropped like a stone. Now or never. This was his only shot, but then Cobra suddenly leapt up and was behind him and out of range of his breath attack. He had enough time to think " _Oh crap!"_ before Cobra had his scaly hand clutching painfully at the back of Natsu's head.

"A wide-range breath attack. Good idea, but it still won't reach the back of your head! HOW ABOUT I JUST CRUSH IT ALREADY!"

However, Cobra's plans were interrupted by a sudden and earsplitting scream that felt like it ripped through time and space itself. If Natsu could even move, he'd be covering his (sensitive) ears.

 _ **"SSSSTTTTTOOOOPPPP IIIITTTTT!"**_

Below the battling half-dragon's, Lucy was screaming at the top of her lungs. And the sound that was coming out of her mouth could rival the roar of an actual dragon. The sound ripped through the area and it felt like the ground itself was trembling...oh wait it really was.

The ground beneath Lucy was splitting as a golden aura cloaked her body. Cobra released Natsu's head and feebly attempted to block out the sound with his hands while screaming in pain. The half-Poison Dragon dropped past Natsu and crashed into the ground as Happy halted Natsu's fall.

"That was quite a roar Lucy!" Natsu grinned, "Lucy? LUCY!"

The blonde girl had seemingly lost consciousness and fell on the grass. Unfortunately, it seemed that Cobra wasn't down for the count yet. He was looking down on Lucy with a murderous glare. At that point Happy couldn't seem to keep airborne anymore and was plummeting to the ground. The impact was hard, and Natsu was hurting all over but it was more from the poison then from the crash landing.

Even then, he still couldn't make his body move. "Da...Dam it! Can't move...!"

"For the pride of the six demons... **I will kill you, you witch**..." Cobra growled, raising a fist cloaked in poison mist, " **DIE!** "

Suddenly, something whistled over Natsu's head and struck Cobra in the shoulder. And leaving a fist sized hole that went clean through. Blood splattered on the grass as the dark mage collapsed next to Lucy.

"That's enough Cobra." an all too familiar voice drawled, "You did a good job. Rest well."

Cobra, who had obviously heard Brain's true thoughts started tearing up and cursing before he passed out. Watching the display made Natsu's blood boil as the master of the Orasion Seis stepped over him and stood next to Lucy's sleeping body.

"You aren't as strong as I remember if you needed to be saved by a girl Natsu." Brain taunted, "Still that was an impressive release of power. Too bad she doesn't quite have the magic capacity to pull off such a spell."

"You jerk. Wasn't...he your comrade?" Natsu growled.

"I can find more comrades in the future once we unseal _it_."

Natsu scowled. "That's not a comrade. That's a puppet."

"Then how about I make this girl my first _puppet_?" Brain said darkly, grabbing Lucy's arm.

No way...he was going to take Lucy away. Natsu's fingers slowly curled into a fist in the grass. His whole body was burning -literally- with rage. Something tugged at his back as he dragged himself to his feet, onyx eyes burning with rage. Brain held firm, his hand still grasping Lucy's arm, but he seemed uneasy as Natsu barreled towards him full tilt.

"YOU AREN'T TAKING LUCY ANYWHERE!" he bellowed, " **FIRE DRAGON'S BRILLIANT FLAME**!"

The guild master bowled down several trees before coming to a halt and was still. Natsu was breathing heavily but when he looked behind of him to check on Lucy, he was surprised to catch a glimpse of flame wings before they disappeared.

"Wings...?"

The adrenaline faded from Natsu's body and he dropped like a stone into darkness.

 **...**

 **A/N: Finally! I'm finished with Cobra...probably. That guy was a pain to write because he kept popping up EVERYWHERE. And Natsu's wings finally showed! Well, an immature version of them. That's not what they look like when they actually form. I modeled this fight after the actual one in the manga. In all honesty it's almost word-for-word with the manga -_-"**

 **Sorry for my lack of creativity in that.**

 **But I changed the ending a little bit. I want to Lucy to be on equal standings with Natsu instead on having her as a damsel-in-distress all the time.**

 **Hope this was another good chapter. I'll try to alternate chapter posts between "The One Magic is Meant For Two" and "Finding His Wings" every other day to avoid writers block.**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: This chapter is going to be kinda short. Sorry if it's not what you expected or wanted, but hey. It's got NaLu fluff. One of these days I'm going to write an extra chapter that's got NOTHING to do with the plot and just do NaLu fluff.**

...

* * *

 **Lucy's POV:**

Lucy felt warm. Before she felt sore and hot but not anymore. Funny, she couldn't remember why she was sore and hot in the first place...

...

...

...

 _"Good idea, but it still won't reach the back of your head! HOW ABOUT I JUST CRUSH IT ALREADY!"_

 _..._

 _..._

 _..._

 _"I couldn't let you get hit, could I? Now get out of here!"_

 _..._

 _..._

 _..._

 _"I DON'T CARE! YOU'RE MY FRIEND NATSU I WON'T LEAVE YOU TO FACE THIS JERK ALONE!"_

 _..._

 _..._

 _..._

 _"Thanks Lucy! I owe you one! You shouldn't be here though! It's too dangerous!"_

...

...

...

Natsu. That's right. He was fighting Cobra of the Orasion Seis. But what happened after that loud noise? Where did that noise come from? Did she make that noise? Her throat _is_ really sore. It feels like someone poured molten lead down it. Her eyes cracked open to sea of dark blue hair.

"...Wendy...?" she croaked, sitting up.

"Lucy-chan! You're finally awake!" she exclaimed, relieved.

Lucy pulled the young half-dragon into a tight hug. "Wendy! Oh my gosh! You're okay! Cobra said they captured you!"

A white cat stood proudly next to the little blue-haired girl. "They did, but luckily Erza and Gray found her before they could do much."

Something wet soaked into Lucy's ruined shirt. "But...they took some of my blood before they rescued me!"

"Blood?" Lucy scowled, "I think Cobra mentioned that...wait where is he anyway? And Natsu, Gray and Erza."

Wendy sat up and wiped her tears. "They're over there." she pointed behind Lucy.

She looked behind her and Wendy was right. Cobra was still passed out and tied up against a tree. Natsu was leaning against the other side of the trunk of the same tree with his eyes closed and Gray was trying to shake him awake while Erza was standing behind him, looking over his (shirtless) shoulder. But the half-Fire Dragon seemed to refuse to wake up. Lucy felt her heart drop.

"What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know. He's not poisoned anymore, but he won't wake up." Wendy sobbed, "I'm sorry. This is my fault."

"Wendy, this is hardly you're fault. I'm sure that Natsu just overdid it again." Lucy reassured the young girl.

"But the Orasion-"

"It's okay Wendy. We'll stop them. They won't get away with whatever they're planning to do with your blood."

Lucy stood up and smiled down at Wendy before extending a hand to help her up. The blue-haired girl lightly gripped Lucy's hand and stood up then weakly smiled at the Celestial Spirit Mage. Lucy thanked Wendy for healing her and Natsu and walked over to the half-dragon in question. Gray was still trying to wake the pink-haired half-dragon but was having no luck. Erza was the first to notice Lucy's presence.

"How are you feeling Lucy?" Erza asked.

"Great. Wendy fixed me up. She even healed that wound in my shoulder." she grinned, "How's Natsu?"

"The moron still won't wake up." Gray briefed.

"Do you know what happened?" the scarlet-haired mage asked.

Lucy shook her head sadly, "No. I was unconscious before whatever happened to Natsu took place."

"Well that's just great." Gray muttered sarcastically, "The Orasion Seis unsealed something, we have no clue where the rest of our alliance is, and one of our strongest is down for the count."

While Gray was continuing his efforts to ruse Natsu from his slumber, Lucy was racking her brain for ways to wake him up. They'd known each other for about a week and a half now and Lucy knew some of the best ways to wake him up. The one that woke him up without fail every time was food. Specifically fire. And Natsu looked like he could use it because Lucy wasn't sensing much magic from the half-dragon. She scrounged around until she found some sticks and some flammable plant fibers then constructed a small campfire with them like she had done earlier to light that torch she threw up to Natsu during his fight with Cobra. Erza and Carla noticed her actions and raised a questioning eyebrow until Lucy had successfully lit a fire.

Lucy cheered in victory to herself and lit a sturdier stick on fire before approaching Natsu and Gray again. The Ice Mage halted mid-insult when Lucy kneeled next to him with a flaming stick in her hand and started waving it in front of Natsu's nose.

"What...are you doing?" Gray asked.

"Waking him up." Lucy said matter-of-factly.

"With a flaming stick? I know he's a half-dragon and all, but how's that going to wake him up?"

"Watch." Lucy ordered, "Natsu, wake up before the fire's out."

And on cue, Natsu's eyes shot wide open and he greedily snatched the flaming branch out of her hand and consumed the flames before a speechless Gray. Lucy chuckled.

"What? You didn't know that half-dragons eat their elements?" Lucy chuckled.

Gray's slack-jawed expression was enough of an answer then Happy materialized out of no where.

"Wow Gray, you're dumber then Lucy if you didn't know that!"

"STUPID CAT! YOU DIDN'T KNOW EITHER!" then Lucy grabbed the blue cat's cheeks and pulled hard, "AND WHO ARE YOU CALLING STUPID!?"

When Lucy finished shouting at the cat, a heavy weight crashed into her and knocked her flat in the grass. Lucy squealed in surprise that Natsu had actually tackled her with a hug and was accidentally starting to crush her with his enhanced strength.

"LUCY! YOU'RE OKAY!" the half-Fire Dragon cheered.

"Whaaa...Of course I'm okay, we should be saying that to you!" Lucy exclaimed.

Quickly Natsu got up and scanned the clearing, his body completely tense. But once he finished his scan, he relaxed and flashed a toothy grin at Lucy. Only to get a punch in the face courtesy of Gray.

"WHAT THE HECK YOU FLAME MORON! WE WERE WORRIED ABOUT YOU!"

Natsu realized who hit him and flamed up as well. "Oh great, it's the ice pervert. What the heck are you doing here!"

"Saving Cait Shelter that's what charcoal brains!"

The half-Fire Dragon and Ice Maker Mage's argument was abruptly halted when a furious Re-quip mage grabbed them by their hair and smashed their heads together. Lucy stifled a mixture of a laugh and a squeal of terror as the two boys crumpled to the grass.

"I-If I can ask, what happened to the rest of the Orasion Seis?" Lucy asked.

Gray sat up rubbing his head. "Lyon and I defeated one of them."

"I beat Cobra." Natsu added.

"And I defeated Angel." Lucy added, "But there are still 3 more left."

Suddenly an explosion rocked the area and a column of black light erupted into the sky. Everyone lost their balance and fell in a heap. Lucy was the first to regain her barrings.

"What the heck was that!?"

Wendy looked at the black light in horror. "No...They unsealed it. THEY UNSEALED NIRVANA!"

* * *

 **...**

 **A/N: I know, short chapter. I wanted to leave off on a dramatic note. Next chapter will be longer...probably. This chapter was mostly NaLu fluff and other junk. Next chapter will (probably) be fights and plot development. IDK honestly, this story writes itself I'm just hear to put the words on the page**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Sorry for not updating sooner, but I was creatively tapped out and school just started up and I'm a bit stressed about that. So the updates are going to be infrequent because school, orchestra, and my karate take 1st-3rd priority in that order. As much as I love you guys and writing for you I need to focus on the things I listed earlier.**

 **I'll update every chance I get, which will probably only be the weekends but since I don't know how heavy my work load is going to be I can't make any promises to you guys unfortunately :(**

 **Thank you for reading my stories and enjoy the next chapter :)**

 **One more thing: READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTE ON THE BOTTOM OF THIS CHAPTER!**

* * *

 _Wendy looked at the black light in horror. "No...They unsealed it. THEY UNSEALED NIRVANA!"_

The surprise of the column of black light had died down and instead, all attention was focused on the petite half-dragon. Lucy was as equally confused as everyone else. But she was sure everyone knew one thing. Whatever Nirvana was, it obviously wasn't very good for them that the Oracion Seis had unsealed it.

"Wendy, what's Nirvana?" Gray asked.

Wendy still stared in horror at the black light for a minute before shakily answering.

"Nirvana is Cait Shelter's greatest secret. It's a magic that was created by the people who lived her 400 years ago. But it was sealed a long time ago because it was so powerful."

Erza stepped in next. "What does Nirvana do?"

The little girl covered her head and shook it. "I'm sorry, I don't know."

Lucy rested a hand on the blue-haired girl's shoulder and smiled softly. "It's okay Wendy. We'll stop it."

"B-But it's my fault that they unsealed Nirvana in the first place!" she sobbed, "And now everyone is going to-"

Suddenly a man with blonde hair darted out of the forest and struck Wendy on the pressure point between her head and neck, effectively rendering the half-dragon unconscious. Natsu immediately launched himself at the assaulter as Wendy fell to the ground, fists blazing and rammed his fiery fist into the blonde man's gut. He tumbled away from Wendy and crashed into a tree trunk. Natsu was about to attack him again when three more men leaped out of the forest.

"STOP!" another blonde man shouted frantically.

Natsu scowled at the men, namely the short creepy looking man up front with all the sparkles swarming around him like a swarm of bees. Lucy could have sworn that Erza paled.

"Hey. You're that guy from the train."

He struck a pose and looked at Natsu. _"Man. And you were the one who released me from the depths of darkness."_

"You mean the chest?" Gray asked.

"Boss was captured a few weeks ago and you saved him." the second blonde man.

The black haired man nodded towards him. "Our heart felt thanks."

Lucy finally found her voice and spoke up. "Uh...who are you exactly?"

All three...four...(the man Natsu punched had stood up again and joined the other three) directed their attention to Lucy, which she found creepy, then struck a pose.

"We are the Trimens of Blue Pegasus." they all said together.

"Hibiki of the Hundred Night."

"Eve of the Holy Night."

"Ren of the Dark Night."

The short creepy man struck another pose in front of the three. " _And I am their leader, Ichiya_."

Ichiya redirected his attention to Erza and leaped at her with a speed that seemed impossible for someone with such short legs shouting something about "how beautiful her 'parfum' was". The re-quip mage responded the way that any sensible young lady would.

She punched him in his abnormally large face screaming for him to go away.

Natsu was rolling on the grass laughing when Carla spoke up.

"Are you dimwits forgetting something? What on earth did you do this to Wendy for!?" she protested, pointing a white paw at the unconscious girl.

Gray nodded. "What _was_ that about anyway?"

Hibiki was the one who settled into the serious mood first and pulled up a strange magic console. "She said that they unsealed Nirvana. From my research, Nirvana is a super-magic that has the power to force someone to change from light to darkness and vise-versa if they're wavering in their allegiances or emotionally unstable. Since Wendy was blaming herself for Nirvana's release, that made her vulnerable to its effects."

"Oh. So you knocked her out to keep her from being effected by Nirvana." Gray put together.

Carla still seemed unenthused. "I can understand why you did what you did, but you could have handled it in a less haphazard manner."

Hibiki smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I had to act fast."

Erza nodded in agreement. "Our top priority right now should be taking out the remainder of the Oracion Seis and finding their goal."

Everyone murmured in agreement. The redhead was correct. They had been fighting these dark mages furiously, but they had no idea what their goal was beyond obtaining the blood of a true half-dragon. Lucy's gaze darted towards Natsu. His expression was unreadable, but Lucy had a suspicion that he was contemplating the Oracion's actions as well. She was half tempted to ask him about the rest of the Oracion Seis. Lucy mentally scolded herself for leaping into this whole event almost blind. She had no idea what the enemy's skill sets were beyond what she had witnessed on Mount Haboke and during Cobra's attack.

However the questions died in her throat. Natsu and the Orasion obviously had a complicated, painful history and it was clearly a sore subject for the half-Fire Dragon. Lucy didn't want to risk opening up old wounds. The last thing she wanted was to see her friend in pain from wounds that couldn't be healed by any magic or medicine.

Lucy never liked to pry on people's pasts with her being so sensitive about her own. And Lucy could tell just by looking at Natsu's eyes that his past was much more twisted and painful then her's could be in a hundred years.

Still, the idea of 3 more mages just as strong, if not stronger then the 3 that were already defeated made Lucy's fingers go numb. The thought of the extra insight was tempting.

"But what about the other 3? They could be stronger then the ones we already beat and like Erza said, we don't even know what they want Nirvana for." Happy whimpered.

"I know someone we can ask." Natsu said flatly.

The pink haired half-dragon stood up and strode over to Cobra, whom everyone including Lucy had forgotten was there. The half-Poison Dragon was wide awake as of now and clearly peeved about being tied to a tree. Why he hadn't just burned through it with that accursed poison mist of his was a mystery to Lucy, but she wasn't complaining.

Natsu grabbed Cobra by the collar of his jacket and lifted him to eye level.

"Well?"

The intensity and hatred in that one word felt like a blow to the stomach to Lucy even though she knew that he wasn't directing that nerve-rattling tone at her. Cobra seemed to feel it even more then her, but was trying to hide how intimidated he was by Natsu by avoiding his gaze with a stubborn head turn and a quiet "hmph".

However, Natsu wasn't taking 'no' for an answer and ignited his hands, which were firmly grasping Cobra's jacket and definitely too close to the dark mage's face for his comfort. That seemed to make the dark mage drop his tough and silent act.

"Okay, okay! Geez, don't turn me into barbecue, I'll talk! I'll talk!"

The flames died down but didn't extinguish completely and Cobra relaxed a little.

"Those are some violent thoughts you have. 1...2...3...4..." he cringed, "That's excessive."

"You know what I want to know Cobra. So spill." Natsu growled.

"Fine. We want Nirvana to have a tea party." Cobra said, rolling his eyes sarcastically.

The snarky comment was met with a hard slam and a thunderous _crack_. Natsu slammed Cobra so hard into the tree that it now had a decent sized crack running up the thick trunk.

"Cut the bull-crap snake b******."

"Arrg. I don't know what Brain wants Nirvana for. The only ones that would know are himself and Midnight. But cannon fodder like me wouldn't."

Natsu scowled deeply and dropped the poison mage before forcing himself to calmly walk back to the group in a poor attempt to hide his frustration. Everyone's expressions also hinted to disappointment and frustration. Lucy was feeling the same way. She was racking her writer's brain for all the viable ideas she could think of, but nothing seemed to fit exactly. But nothing seemed good for them either. The only fact about the Oracion's actions that was clear, was unsealing Nirvana was going to be catastrophic for them.

"Well. I guess the only way we're going to find out what they want Nirvana for is to find this 'Brain' guy and beat the answers outta him." Gray suggested.

Everyone nodded in agreement, Natsu even cracked a smile.

"For once I agree with y'ah snow pansy." Natsu stood up and ignited one of his fists, "I'm all fired up!"

...

When Wendy woke up again, the Aligned Forces (as they had called themselves) had explained a plan they had hastily slapped together roughly 5 minutes ago while on the move towards the black pillar of light. The plan was to split up into teams of three. Since the allies from Lamia Scale where MIA, that only left them with 9 mages at their disposal (not including Happy and Carla). Ren, Eve and Ichiya were group 1; Gray, Erza, and Natsu were group 2; and Hibiki, Wendy, and Lucy were group 3 or the "Home Base" group.

Lucy was perfectly fine with this arrangement and she could tell that Wendy was as well. Since their skill sets weren't as well suited for battle as the rest of the mages, they would be more of a hinderance then an asset against the remaining Oracion. Even though Natsu put up an argument that Lucy could handle herself perfectly well since she took out a member of the Oracion Seis alone and without her magic. But then Lucy brought up the point that Gray had to finish her off. The pink-haired half-dragon grumbled quietly to himself after that.

Their main job was to locate the remainder of the Oracion Seis and their Allied Forces through the combination of Hibiki's **Archive Magic** and Wendy's knowledge of the forest's layout. Their other job was to keep everyone in constant contact also via Hibiki's **Archive Magic**. Lucy, Carla and Happy had the task of surveying from the air to see if they could find the representatives from Lamia.

So far they found nothing. Lucy had originally thought that an arial sweep would be pointless, but then again even though the tree's canopies were tightly packed together any signs of a battle would break through in the form of explosions, sound, or waves of magic energy. Even with that working in their favor and a grid search of the area around where Nirvana was reaped no new information on the whereabouts of their fellow mages.

"We should head back. There isn't anything we can discover from up here." Lucy said.

Carla nodded her head in agreement. "She's right. Our best bet is to return to base and see what Hibiki and the others have discovered."

Upon returning to base (thankfully without being shot down by an enemy), Wendy rushed up to them in excitement.

"Lucy-chan! I think Hibiki-san and I found something!"

Lucy's eyes widened. "Really? What is it?"

"Come and see."

Hibiki was a little farther off, studying a magic holographic map of the area. However, there were two red dots in addition to the clusters of three dots scattered around the area and the big purple spot in the center.

"What's those two red dots?" Happy asked.

"Two other people. I haven't gotten a clear read on them because of some interference, but they are definitely powerful mages." the archive mage reported.

"Is that good news or bad news?" Lucy asked, "Because those two are awfully close."

As soon as Lucy said those words two shadows emerged from the tree line...

* * *

 **A/N: GAHH! This chapter took me longer then it should have! Stupid writer's block *grumbles*. Anyway, I've got an exciting announcement even though I doubt anyone is going to read this unless they're like me and really only read these when there's nothing else to read.**

 **I am going to be participating in the first ever "Dragneel Brother's Week". It's a thing they're doing on Tumblr, and since I don't have a Tumblr account and I really want to do this, I'm going to make a collection of 7 One-Shots about the Dragneel Brothers.**

 **It's going to be painful. I can already tell.**

 **I'm going to primarily focus on those since I have 7 One-Shots to write and I want to knock them all out before the actual "Dragneel Brother's Week" (September 21st-September 27th for all of you who want to know) so I can keep a posting** **schedule and post one every day for that week. And with school and other things most likely going to get in my way, I want to get it done ahead of time.**

 **That means, most other stories (including this one and "The One Magic is Meant for Two") are going to be put on the back burner for a bit. Unless I get writer's block for my One-Shots or just don't feel like (or have an idea for) writing one.**

 **Here are the themes for the Dragneel Brother's Week:**

 **Day 1- Birth**

 **Day 2-Family**

 **Day 3- Fall**

 **Day 4- Serenity**

 **Day 5- Sacrifice**

 **Day 6- Curse**

 **Day 7- Immortality**

 _ **Bonus Day 8- Memories (October 1st)**_


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Chapter 13! Still not a lot compared to other stories (which I am waiting for updates *evil eye*) but this is the longest story I've written so far.**

 **Also, IMPORTANT NEWS! I created a poll. Basically, I'm going to try to map out all the possible adventures that Lucy and Natsu should have and with who because I am going to send them back to Hajimari (where they met) and there's going to be some chaos there. Still wondering how to incorporate Lucy's background because it would be stupid if I just dropped that...**

 **I would appreciate it if you guys kept an eye out for my poll, because I'd appreciate the feedback. I find it's always easier for me to string together good ideas when I talk about it with other people ^_^**

 **Also, on an unrelated note: Chapter 450 and Chapter 451 of Fairy Tail...**

 **OWWW! MY HEART! THAT HURT SO MUCH! AND ZEREF...YOU A-HOLE! HOW FREAKING DARE YOU DROP MAVIS LIKE THAT!**

 **And the title of Chapter 452: Prelude to the _FINAL BATTLE_...**

 **...**

 **...**

 **...I'm not ready for this. I AM NOT READY FOR THIS**

 **Okay. Rant over**

 **Enjoy the next chapter :)**

 **...**

Lucy felt she should learn not to say such things out loud. Because there were two fairly large shadows approaching them. Wendy shied away and hid behind Lucy. The blonde Celestial Mage didn't have any complaints about the half-Sky dragon hiding behind her, because she was going to try and protect her anyway. She knew that out of the three (five with the cats) of them, her skills were the most adapt for combat. Her fingers latched around Taurus's key and held it tightly in her hand until her knuckles were white. Two men stepped out of the tree line. A bald man with an air of calming authority around him, the other man was strikingly familiar.

"You! You're one of the Oracion Seis!" Lucy exclaimed, pointing the gold key at the polygonal faced wizard, " **Open! Gate of the-** "

"Stop!" The bald man ordered, "Hoteye is not our enemy any more."

Lucy scowled skeptically at them and Wendy clutched Lucy's other arm tightly at the mention of the Oracion Seis. Hibiki was first to speak.

"Who exactly is he?"

"A member of the Oracion Seis. Natsu and I met him in the mountains with the rest of his guild. He has an obsession with money." Lucy explained, not taking her eyes off the duo.

"If I may, but Hoteye is different now." the bald man explained.

"'Different'? Different how?" Lucy asked, suspicious.

"The world is love!"

"EH!?"

"As you can see, Hoteye has had a change of heart." the bald man said, "We were about to do battle when he suddenly changed."

Hibiki started typing away on his archive. "This could be an effect of Nirvana."

The man raised an eyebrow. "Nirvana?"

Hibiki was about to answer when he was cut off.

"Nirvana is the Oracion Seis's goal, oh yeah! It's a super magic that can turn people's alinements from light to dark and vise-versa."

Lucy's eyes widened. "Wait a minute, you mean to tell me that you were teetering between light and dark when that thing was unsealed!?"

Hoteye nodded.

"Why were you in between good and evil?" Wendy asked sheepishly.

"I became obsessed with money because I wanted to gather enough to search for my brother who disappeared about 10 years ago." he admitted, "I could see that I was traveling a dark path, but I refused to acknowledge that fact and I was since warring with myself."

"The question that bothers me is why does the Orasion Seis want Nirvana in the first place?" Hibiki added thoughtfully.

"I'm afraid I cannot assist you in that respect." Hoteye admitted, "Only Master Brain and Midnight would know anything about the objective."

Lucy scowled deeply for a moment. "Just one more question. Who are you?" She asked pointing at the bald man.

"My name is Jura of the Mage guild Lamia Scale."

Lucy's jaw literally dropped. "You mean the Wizard Saint Jura that Erza said had come to help fight the Orasion Seis?"

Jura chuckled. "The very same."

The blonde Mage felt immediately embarrassed that she had behaved in such a way in the presence of one of the strongest mages in the country. She knew he wouldn't hurt her for it but it still was intimidating that such a powerful Mage stood before her. Even after interacting with other strong mages like Natsu, Erza, and Gray, they seemed to almost pale in comparison to the Wizard Saint.

Wendy finally spoke up. "I-If I may, Hoteye-san, but why did the Orasion Seis need half-dragon blood?"

"The blood of a true half-dragon has special properties as an anti-sealant. It's high consintration of ancient magic makes it an ideal catalyst in undoing powerful seals such as the one on Nirvana."

Lucy's eyes widened. The blood that ran through the veins of half-dragons didn't just grant them unimanginable powers but had properties of its own? The Celestial Mage couldn't even fathom what kind of trouble half-dragons would be dragged into just because of it. But if something is that strong, it's bound to attract trouble.

"So how do we seal it again? More half-dragon blood?"

"Unfortunately it isn't that simple." Jura said, "As Hoteye informed me, half-dragon blood can only disengage spells. It isn't meant to help enact them. The best option we have is destroying Nirvana."

Wendy gasped. "B-But Nirvana is an important relic to my guild!"

Jura's eyes softened. "I'm sorry young lady, but at this stage it's impossible to re-seal Nirvana. The only option we have is to destroy it."

The blue-haired half-dragon's expression shifted between disappointment and grief. Lucy didn't know how important Nirvana was to Wendy and Cait Shelter, but she was positive that the young girl understood that there was no other way. From what Hibiki had informed them on before the split up, sealing Nirvana again would take more magic power then could be supplied my every Mage on the continent, which makes it a wonder how it was sealed in the first place.

"How are we going to stop them?" Lucy asked quietly.

Uneasy silence hung over the group of five (plus two cats) like a heavy cloud. What _were_ they going to do? Sure, Jura is probably very strong but Lucy doubted that even a Wizard Saint could take on the two strongest members of one of the three more powerful dark guilds in the magic underworld, Hoteye could help, but Lucy wasn't sure of his own battle skills and all the other battle-able people were scattered else where.

Hibiki took a deep breath. "We're just going to have to hope that-"

The ground trembled suddenly and Lucy lost her balance and landed flat on her back. Looking up, she could see the once massive pillar of black light had suddenly turned white and was less of a pillar and more of a 2 mile wide beam. And something was coming out of it. A giant stone foundation upon which sat what appeared to be the ruins of an ancient city rose out of the ground about 30 feet away. Even when the foundation was well out of the ground, the rumbling continued.

Lucy was about to ask what that was when a rolling wall of stone was coming at them. The ground underneath them surged and they were all swept up on what looked like a giant leg. From up here, Lucy could get a better view of what was happening. There were five other leg-like contraptions coming out of the ground. And on the next leg over, Lucy could see a familiar head of pink hair.

"NATSU!" she shouted.

The pink-haired half-dragon turned his head towards Lucy. "LUCY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"

"TRYING NOT TO DIE! HOW 'BOUT YOU!?" Lucy shouted.

"IS THIS REALLY THE TIME TO BE JOKING AROUND LUCE!?"

"WHO SAYS I'M JOKING!?"

Lucy was literally clinging on to the blocks making up the contraption's legs by the tips of her fingernails as it slowly started moving. The edge of the block suddenly crumbled and gravity took over. A blood-curtiling scream ripped itself from her throat. Her name tore through the air while she tumbled down the leg before she managed to snag another edge.

"Lucy-chan! Are you okay!?" Wendy asked from above.

"Yeah!"

Slowly, Lucy started climbing up the leg and caught up with everyone else but quickly realized there was someone missing.

"Hey. Where's Hibiki?" Lucy asked.

"He must have gotten left behind when the leg came up." Carla offered, "Right now we need to get to the top and stop this thing."

"Hey Lucy!" a cheery voice greeted right behind Lucy's head.

Lucy shrieked, whipped around and almost punched Natsu in the face.

"Natsu! What the heck are you doing!? You gave me a heart attack!" she huffed angrily.

"Sorry Luce." he said sheepishly, "Happy and I are going to the top. We'll meet you there."

Happy 'aye'ed and the blue cat and flightless half-dragon disappeared towards the ruins. Lucy and Wendy made a wordless decision for Wendy and Carla to go ahead and Lucy to meet up with them. Lucy watched the half-Sky Dragon and white cat disappear into the ruins. Subconsciously she didn't want to be left alone. Hoteye and Jura had disappeared and Gray and Erza were on the other leg.

But despite the lump of fear forming in her stomach, Lucy pressed on to the ruins. When she finally made it, she was bone tired and sweating buckets. Lucy felt like sitting against the building and resting but she knew she had to continue. Now that she was actually inside the city, Lucy realized how big it actually was. She groaned inwardly at her dilemma.

"Find two powerful dark wizards in a massive city within an unknown amount of time. Easy, right? Not." Lucy muttered sarcastically.

Explosions suddenly rocked the city, causing Lucy to lose her balance and fall against one of the buildings.

"GET OUT BACK HERE YOU SLEEPING B****** AND LET ME PUNCH YOU!" shouted a familiar and angry sounding voice.

Lucy sweat-dropped. "Oh Natsu."

"It seems our half-dragon friend has found Midnight." a chilling new voice chortled.

Lucy shot up and whipped around to see the man that was holding that creepy staff in the mountains. The way this man was regarding her was creeping Lucy out. She reached for her whip, but as soon as her fingers wrapped around it, it spontaneously combusted. Lucy dropped the vine whip on the ground in a panic, watching helplessly as her only weapon was reduced to ashes. The ivory haired man chuckled darkly.

"You seem to matter a great deal to Natsu. You'll do nicely."

Before Lucy could fully process the words that had just been said, sleep slammed her in the head like a lead weight.

* * *

 **A/N: Finally done! Sorry the update was later then anticipated. And surprisingly school isn't what's getting in my way. Dam writer's block. As much as I love the Nirvana/Oracion Seis Arc, I REALLY want to move the story along. So this arc is going to end with in the next 1-3 chapters then it's back to Hajimari!**

 **My only request for you guys is to check out the poll (that's hopefully) on my profile page. I have an idea of what I want to do with the story when they get to Hajimari, but I still want to hear your opinions.**

 **Thx for being awesome :)**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Hello everyone! How's it hangin' since the last cliffhanger? Yeah, I know. I'm evil. New chapter is FINALLY up! I blame writer's block.**

 **Just had to put this in. You remember this quote from episode 60(I think...?)?**

 **"An octopus of the forest is all KINDS of wrong." ~Motion Sick Natsu**

 **Just remembered this quote and it made me laugh XD**

 **Thank you to all the people who have reviewed my work. You're support means a lot to me. Fanfiction net is actually the first place I've ever let people outside of my friends, family, and teachers see my writing and that it's being so well received so far is heartwarming to me :)**

 **Enjoy the chapter :)**

 **...**

 **Natsu's POV:**

This guy is REALLY annoying. Every time he tried to hit him, his attacks veer off corse. Natsu almost hit Gray a couple of times. Happy was doing his best to keep him in the air because this thing just HAD to start moving. Stupid motion sickness. Sometimes being a half-dragon really bites. Natsu wasn't the only one having trouble with Midnight. He kept twisting Gray's ice and Erza's swords.

Natsu always remembered Midnight was a pain in the butt. Even when he was just 11, he was a talented Reflector mage. Every time they had exchanged blows, Natsu could never land a hit on Midnight, but Midnight could almost always land a hit on him. This infuriated the half-Fire dragon. He hated losing and he hated that smug smirk Midnight always flashed when he twisted Natsu's roar around him and most of all, Natsu hated the audacity the dark mage had to sleep during their battles.

In fact he was doing it right now. Well, he was fighting them with his eyes closed, but in a way Midnight was sleeping while they threw everything they had at him, only to either have it reflected around him, back at them, or at each other.

"Freaking show off." Natsu muttered bitterly, "GET BACK HERE YOU SLEEPING B****** AND LET ME PUNCH YOU!"

Finally the Reflector mage opened his eyes and glanced mockingly at Natsu.

"Oh? You, hit me? You never once managed to land a single blow on me every time we fought."

Natsu clenched his fists angrily, his scales flashed in response. His rage and frustration boiling under his skin. He was so busy glaring daggers at Midnight too notice that his clothes were starting to twist around Happy.

"Natsu! You're clothes are attacking me!" the blue cat exclaimed.

His hand locked around the cloth and tore it free from Midnight's control and Happy flew at him in a controlled dive. Until it became uncontrolled and they dropped like a couple of stones, tangled in their own clothes. Natsu cursed angrily and tried to wiggle his arms out, while biting back his motion sickness at the same time.

Midnight laughed in amusement at the pinkette's predicament, until a certain Titania punched him hard from behind, knocking him off his flying carpet and faceplanting into the ground. Gray snorted.

"Finally landed a blow. Nice one Erza."

The redhaired Re-quip mage towered ominously over Midnight, glaring down at him with a furiousiness that would put even an angry Igneel to shame.

"Your skill is impressive, but your magic has two main weaknesses."

Happy and Natsu had gotten themselves untangled with Midnight's hold over their clothing broken and in the air again, but even with his motion sickness slowing his thoughts, Natsu still heard Erza's words loud and clear. And he couldn't believe it. He knew Erza was good, but had she really found not just one but two kinks in Midnight's seemingly invincible armor?

Before he could ask the burning questions an ominous laugh echoed through the ruined streets from behind him. Natsu turned midair to come face to face with Brain, who was standing on top of a building a few blocks away, looking even more smug than normal.

"Natsu Dragneel. It's been so long since we last spoke face to face. It's been what? 5 years?"

"Brain. What the heck are you doing?" Natsu growled.

"I'm here to make a deal." he smirked, maniacally.

Natsu's blood ran cold. "What deal?"

Brain extended his free hand, a shadowy light swirling around it for a moment before a portal opened. The purple and green vortex swirled hypnotically until a human sized figure toppled through it. A human with blonde hair.

"LUCY!"

The master of the Oracion Seis held the blonde Celestial Spirit Mage by her wrist over the edge of the building. She looked almost dead. Her eyes were closed and her skin was a ghostly pale. The only sign the blonde was even alive was the gentle rise and fall of her chest.

"What did you do to her!?" he bellowed angrily.

"Natsu, get a hold of yourself. He's just trying to make you angry." Happy warned.

Well it was certainly working. Natsu wasn't sure why, but the thought that Lucy was hurt or in danger made his blood boil. Maybe it's because she's his first true friend since Igneel left him. The first person who didn't think he was a freak or a weapon.

"My deal is this. Halt your attack on Nirvana and I will let the girl live."

"And if I don't agree?"

Brain smiled sadistically. "Then she dies."

He loosened his grip on her wrist ever-so-slightly and Lucy jerked downwards, following the irresistible pull of gravity. If Natsu wasn't hovering in midair he would have pounced at Brain and ripped Lucy away from him. His face must have contorted into an animalistic snarl because Brain flashed a victorious smirk.

"It's your choice Natsu. Stop Nirvana, or save your friend."

Natsu clutched his fist so hard that blood was trickling from the crescent shaped cuts in the flesh of his hands. How was he going to get himself out of this one? But why did Brain go after Lucy?

Natsu's eyes widened a hair. When Lucy had saved him from Cobra, Brain appeared and tried to take her. And Natsu snapped. He'd gotten angry plenty of times, but this was a different kind of anger. A kind of anger that Natsu didn't quite have a name for.

Brain must have pieced together that Lucy was a person of significance to him and was using that to his advantage.

"Natsu! What the heck are you doing? We could use a hand here!" Gray shouted below him.

"Tell them that I'm here and your friend's life will come to a painful end." Brain threatened.

Natsu gritted his teeth. "I think I see something! It could be a way to stop Nirvana. You got things handled here?"

"I just said we could use a hand, ash-for-brains!" the ice mage protested.

"Gray, we can handle the situation. Natsu, if you think you can stop Nirvana, go for it!" Erza shouted, "We will deal with Midnight."

The half-dragon nodded and circled around to where they couldn't see him, but he could still see Brain. Natsu wished that looks could kill because he didn't just want to run Brain into the ground, he wanted to tear him to shreds.

"Wise choice complying with my wishes." the dark guild master smirked, "Have you made your choice?"

Natsu's bangs shadowed his eyes. "Yeah."

"Natsu…." Happy whimpered.

"HAPPY, MAX SPEED!" Natsu bellowed.

The blue cat immediately obeyed and unleashed the full extent of his Aera magic. Brain didn't seem to expect the sudden move and Lucy was easily snatched out of his grasp. As they speed off, Brain bellowed angrily at the loss of his leverage. Natsu smirked in victory, but unfortunately it was short lived.

"Natsu, I don't think I can fly anymore…" Happy moaned.

The blue cat's wings vanished and Natsu, Lucy, and Happy alike plummeted through the air. The pink-haired half-dragon instinctively clutched the unconscious Celestial Mage to his chest and rolled mid-air so he took the brunt of the fall. The impact was painful, but as soon as they landed on Nirvana, Natsu's motion sickness kicked in with a vengeance.

"Why does this thing have to be moving…? BLEH!" he moaned, biting back vomit.

"I'm sorry Natsu…" Happy groaned.

"It's fine bud...you did what you could…"

Brain suddenly materialized in front of Natsu, his expression holding a murderous rage that was directed at him. Through his motion sickness, Natsu scowled and turned to shield Lucy, who was still unconscious and even more defenceless than he was.

"You pitiful son of a lizard!" Brain bellowed, kicking Natsu hard in the back, "I will make you know true suffering for double-crossing me like that!"

Another swift kick ripped through his back. Natsu winced, but still held firm. The air behind him crackled with magic, meaning only one thing. Brain was casting a spell at them. A powerful spell that would be meant to kill them in the most brutal way possible. Natsu braced himself for the end. At least if he was going to die here today, he'd die protecting his friend.

"Dark Caprene-oof!"

The spell was cut off, by a sudden attack. Three scents mingled in the air. Damp earth, floral shampoo and spring breeze.

"Natsu-san! Are you and Lucy-chan okay?" a young and familiar voice asked, concern clear.

Natsu was about to speak, but was cut off by his motion sickness. The blue-haired half-Sky dragon appeared next to him while Carla went to scold Happy.

"Oh no! What's wrong?"

"Motion...sickness….BLEGH!"

Wendy extended her petite hands around his head and muttered a spell that Natsu couldn't catch in his motion sickness induced haze. But the feeling of his stomach trying to tie itself in knots faded until it was gone completely.

"Eh?"

Natsu released his seeming death hold on Lucy and stood up. The ground was still moving underneath his feet, but his motion sickness was gone.

"Wow! It doesn't even feel like it's moving!" Natsu exclaimed childishly, "What spell was that Wendy? Could you teach me that?"

"S-Sorry Natsu-san, but it's Sky Dragon magic."

"Oh."

"I hate to be a downer, but you should take Lucy-dono and leave while you can Natsu-dono." a mature voice said.

Natsu looked past Wendy at the bald man who was facing down Brain. Then he turned to Wendy.

"Who's the potato?"

The potato man's jaw dropped. "POTATO!?"

"Natsu-san, that's Jura one of the Ten Wizard Saints." Wendy explained.

"Oh."

"As I said. You should take Lucy-dono and leave while you can." Jura said, the mature mood settling again, "I will deal with Brain."

Brain laughed sadistically. "You deal with me? You fool! I am the leader of the Orasion Seis, the strongest member!"

Jura's tone dropped to a threatening octave. "You have stolen an important relic to Wendy-dono's guild and have attempted to harm Lucy-dono and Natsu-dono. Tell me, what is your goal."

"I don't have to tell you anything!"

The two wizards continued their argument as Natsu watched. He was torn between his choices. He really wanted to watch this fight, maybe even get a few hits in himself because he could be on Nirvana now without emptying the contents of his stomach. But, he knew he needed to get Lucy out of there. She's completely vulnerable in her current state.

Wendy pulled on his vest and nodded towards the end of the street, leading away from the impending battle. Natsu nodded shortly and picked up Lucy while Wendy picked up Happy. The half-Fire Dragon always made jokes about Lucy being heavy, but she was actually light compared to most things he's lifted over the years. Guess he just enjoyed getting a rise out of her.

A smile twinged at the corners of his mouth as he and Wendy made a mad dash for the end of the street, which quickly disappeared when a ray of magic narrowly missed Natsu's head and struck the building he just passed.

"YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE NATSU DRAGNEEL!" Brain roared.

"Iron Rock Wall!"

A barrier of stone rose from the ground, barring Brain's path towards Natsu and Wendy. They quickly turned the corner when explosions and battle cries rang through the streets.

"Wendy, do you know what's running this thing?" Natsu asked.

"I-I'm sorry! But I don't know much about Nirvana! It's always been a forbidden topic, there aren't even many records on it!"

Natsu glanced up at the city skyline. Far off there was a large tower like building that stood taller then the rest.

"How about up there?"

Carla glanced up. "That is actually a viable possibility. The control matrix could be up there."

Natsu speed up. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's get moving!"

* * *

 **A/N: Two chapters in one week! I'm on fire! Mostly because I found a way to work on chapters while I have free time at school, so hopefully I'll keep updating** **regularly.**

 **Please check out the poll on my profile too. Thanks for reading the chapter :)**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Thank you to all the people who enjoy reading my crappy writing for over 6,000 views! It makes me feel good that people love my work (even if it's crap sometimes *flashback to old version of Chapters 5 & 6*) and I always am smiling like an idiot at the screen whenever one of my stories gets a review.**

 **Sorry this took so long, but Oracion Seis is wrapping up this chapter, so buckle up for an EXTRA long chapter**

 **Keep being awesome and enjoy the next chapter :)**

…

Lucy felt like she was floating somewhere between consciousness and unconsciousness. She could catch words and sounds from around her sometimes but most of it was blurred out by her tired mind. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't open her eyes. It felt like her eyelids had been superglued shut, but now she could feel it loosening little-by-little until she could finally open them.

At first, she regretted it because even if it was night time, compared to the total darkness she was used to, it was too bright. Her thoughts were slow as molasses and it took her mind a while to register that she was being carried. When she opened her eyes again, this time prepared for the brightness, she was looking up at Natsu.

"Natsu….?" she asked, slowly.

The pink-haired half-dragon glanced down at her, several micro-expressions flashing across his face in a single moment. Relief, happiness, worry, and something else she could quite place.

"Lucy! You're awake!"

"Lucy-chan are you okay?" Wendy asked, looking up at her while holding Happy.

"Yeah, just a bit sluggish." she chuckled.

"Can you stand?"

"I-I think so."

"Good, cause you're heavy." Natsu said.

A vein pulsed in Lucy's forehead. "Are you seriously starting that up again!?"

Natsu chuckled, and despite his words, he lowered her legs with surprising gentleness and even held on to her until she regained her balance.

When Lucy was fully awake, Wendy and Natsu caught her up to speed about their plan to take out Nirvana while Jura, Erza, and Gray handled the last two members of the Oracion Seis.

"So you think that the control matrix is somewhere in that tower?" Lucy guessed.

Carla nodded. "Nirvana has to be controlled from somewhere, and that tower is in the center of the city and is the tallest structure. If that isn't the control matrix, I don't know what is."

The tower was looming over them as they finally reached the base. Lucy was still hungover from the sleep spell that Brain cast on her, but she fought through it and followed in hot pursuit of the two half-dragons and cat as they quickly ascended the narrow spiralling stairs. There were landings every few yards with doors leading to the remains of different rooms that ranged from libraries to bedrooms to the skeleton of an old kitchen. But nothing that looked even remotely like a control room.

Soon enough, they reached the top of the stairs and Natsu threw open a hatch at the top. They filed out of through the open hatch, only to find next to nothing was there. Lucy felt like she was going to drop again and leaned on her knees, huffing in attempts to catch her breath.

"There's nothing up here. Please don't tell me we climbed all those stairs for nothing." she moaned, dejectedly.

"You needed the exercise Lucy, maybe you lost some weight!" Happy jeered mockingly.

Lucy shot the blue cat a pointed look but said nothing. Still, the idea that they climbed all the way up here for nothing upset her. But what upset her more it that they have no idea where the controls for Nirvana are or what Brain's goal is, and on top of that they could be running out of time.

However, Lucy's doubts were displaced when Natsu and Wendy scanning the area, like they could sense something she couldn't.

"Natsu…? Wendy…? What are you doing? There isn't anything up here. Right?"

Natsu however looked on high alert, Wendy did as well. Both half-dragon's eyes were slitted ominously as they scanned the roof, noses twitching ever-so-slightly and ears pricked to catch the smallest sound.

"...No...there's something here alright." Natsu muttered distantly, "We just can't see it."

Natsu and Wendy prowled around the roof, scenting the air and stopping for a moment to listen. For what, Lucy hadn't the faintest clue, but it seems that it was important. Suddenly, Wendy slammed a tiny palm into the air at the center of the roof. Both Carla and Lucy raised a quizitive eyebrow at the half-Sky Dragon, until gold lines lit up the roof, weaving themselves into what appeared to be some kind of control board.

"You found it Wendy!" Natsu cheered, switching back to his normal attitude, "Now let's stop this thing!"

The control matrix had fully formed, but Wendy was staring at it, horror glowing in her eyes. Her extended hand trembled as she stared at a point on the panel.

"Wendy…? What's wrong?" Lucy asked, slowly approaching the blue haired girl.

"N-Nirvana. I-It's heading straight for Cait Shelter!" she wailed, voice trembling.

"What!?" Natsu bellowed, "Why's this thing makin' a beeline for your guild!?"

Lucy examined the coding. Apart from the geographic coordinates that Wendy seemed to recognize as the exact location of her guild hall, the rest of the code was composed of a mixture of different ancient languages. From her prior experience in ancient writings, Lucy could read some of it. The rest however was unreadable to the Celestial mage. But from what she could make out, it wasn't good.

"It's Brain." Lucy blurted.

"Brain!?" Natsu growled.

"How do you know that Lushi?" Happy asked."I can read some of this. Not all of it, but it seems that he's set Nirvana to march towards Cait Shelter and…."

"And what?" Natsu asked, impatiently.

"I don't know. I can't read the next bit. This coding is a hodgepodge of different ancient languages. I can only make out bits and pieces of it, but the rest isn't any language I'm familiar with."

"What exactly can you make out?" Carla asked, "And how do you know that Brain is the one that set Nirvana?"

"He seems like the only one smart enough to actually know these languages. Besides, he's the only one that I can think of that would have the motive to take Nirvana to Cait Shelter."" Lucy sighed, "The only bits I can make out in this code are that it's set to march towards Cait Shelter, and that the Nirvana cannon is gearing to fire. Other than that, I can't read it."

"Cannon? That doesn't sound good." Natsu said.

Lucy nodded her head dejectedly. "How are we going to stop it? I don't know about you, but I don't know the layout of this place or even how it runs."

All eyes turned towards Wendy.

"Why do you always look at Wendy every time something about Nirvana comes up?" Carla barked.

"Because, she's the only Cait Shelter member here." Natsu said, matter-of-factly.

"Carla's a member." Happy pointed out.

Natsu shrugged. "Yeah, but I doubt that she'd know anything about Nirvana."

"Then how would you expect a 12-year-old to know!?" Carla exclaimed angrily.

Natsu ignored the white cat and leaned over Lucy's shoulder to get a better look at the code. The action made Lucy stiffen for reasons unknown to her and most likely Natsu. What the half-Fire Dragon was doing was a mystery to Lucy, but she was sure it was safe to assume that he was seeing if he could read anything. Finally he withdrew and moaned in annoyance.

"Ah! I can't read any of that! Lushi, how are you able to?"

Lucy sweat-dropped. "Natsu, does that really matter right now?"

"No. No it does not! We have to focus on stopping Nirvana." Carla interjected.

"B-But how?" Wendy trembled, "None of us even know anything about Nirvana."

 _ **"But I know someone who does."**_ a voice in Lucy's head said.

The voice sounded vaguely familiar and everyone else seemed to hear it too.

"Who are you?" Natsu asked outloud.

 _ **"You don't remember Hibiki? You'd think that someone like you would remember the man you punched."**_ a more mature voice muttered.

"Hibiki? Are you okay? We thought we lost you when Nirvana came up." Lucy said.

 _ **"You did. I was left behind when the leg came and swept you all up."**_ Hibiki's voice sighed, _**"But that's besides the point. I know how we can stop Nirvana."**_

"How?" almost everyone asked.

 _ **"I'm sure you remember the legs that got you all up here in the first place?"**_ the mystery voice asked.

 _ **"Lyon? What're you doing here?"**_ Gray's voice asked.

"Wait a minute. Is everyone actually listening to this?" Lucy asked.

 _ **"Of course."**_ Erza's voice said, _**"We are all working as a team."**_

"You said you knew how to stop Nirvana." Carla asked, steering the conversation back on topic.

 _ **"I spoke with you master through a telepathy link and he said that the only way to stop Nirvana for sure is to take out the legs."**_ Hibiki informed.

"Sounds simple enough." Natsu said.

 _ **"I'm afraid it's not quite as simple as it sounds."**_ Lyon said, _**"These legs are actually tubes that suck up magic energy from the ground. That is how Nirvana is able to move. But to actually take them out, you have to destroy the lacramas at the base of each leg simultaneously."**_

"We have to take them all out at the same time?" Wendy summarized.

 _ **"Yes. If you just destroy them one at a time, then they will instantly repair themselves. There are 6 lacramas in total. So 6 wizards are going to have to take out the 6 lacramas."**_ Hibiki explained, _**"I'll use my**_ **Archive** _ **to upload a map to the lacramas and timer to all of you so you can destroy them at the same moment."**_

In the back of Lucy's mind there was a small ping and the knowledge of Nirvana's layout worked its way into her mind along with a clock counting down from 20 minutes. Suddenly, Lucy realized something important.

"Wait, we only have 5 wizards." she pointed out.

"What about Jura-san?" Wendy asked.

 _ **"Are you listening Jura?"**_ Lyon asked.

The answer Lyon's call got however wasn't one that was wanted.

 _ **"I'm afraid Jura isn't taking any calls right now. May I take a message?"**_ a sadistic voice asked mockingly.

"BRAIN!" Natsu bellowed, "What the heck did you do?"

 _ **"I merely squished an insect that was annoying me."**_

Natsu and Lyon both cursed the dark guild master under their breaths as he continued.

 _ **"You have no chance of stopping Nirvana. Cait Shelter shall fall today."**_ Brain mocked, _**"Try your hardest little mages, but you can't win. You don't even have enough mages to take out Nirvana."**_

 _ **"Don't be so sure, oh yeah!"**_ a familiar voice called telepathically.

"Is that who I think it is?" Natsu asked, skeptically.

Lucy nodded. "Hoteye."

 _ **"HOTEYE!"**_ Brain bellowed, causing everyone to cover their ears in futile attempt to block out the noise, _**"YOU TRAITOR! HOW DARE YOU BETRAY ME!"**_

 _ **"I have seen the truth and I intend to follow it in the name of love, oh yeah!"**_

The members of the telepathic link seemed to sweat-drop subconsciously. Lucy knew she should be glad that they had such a strong mage on their side now, but she wasn't going to sugarcoat it. Hoteye was really weird.

By now Brain composed himself and continued his speech.

 _ **"Even if you do have enough mages now, you will never even make it to the lacramas in time."**_ the dark mage taunted inside their minds.

 _ **"Oh yeah? And why's that?"**_ Gray asked, skeptically.

Explosions rocked the tower that Lucy, Natsu, Wendy and the cats were standing and it started teetering. Happy immediately grabbed Natsu and Carla grabbed Wendy. Which unfortunately left Lucy without a way out. She reached for her vine whip, only to find that it was no longer there.

Vaguely, she remembered the whip she worked so hard on and she had had since this whole adventure begin had been reduced to ashes by Brain. So Lucy did the only thing she could do.

Scream and brace for the worst.

A golden flash caught her attention however, and a Celestial Spirit in a maid outfit was standing next to Lucy with something in her hand.

"Virgo!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Princess," Virgo said, "I think you may need this. You seem to be in a predicament."

Virgo handed Lucy a cylinder with two star charms hanging off the end. Lucy took it, but she didn't have the faintest idea what it was. And she didn't have much time left, she was losing traction on the falling tower's roof at a pace that was heavily alarming to the Celestial Mage.

"What is it?" she asked.

"It's an extendable whip from the Celestial Spirit Realm." the maid-spirit explained, "I thought you could use it since the one that you normally use has been destroyed."

"Thank you!" Lucy smiled.

"Time for punishment?"

"No! But you should get out of here."

"As you wish princess."

The Celestial Spirit vanished in a flash of light and Lucy finally lost her traction and freefell from the roof of the tower that was roughly 600 feet in the air. Natsu and Wendy shouted her name above her, but Lucy was already acting out of instinct and activated her new tool.

"She said 'extendable', right?" she muttered to herself.

The long glowing blue whip wrapped itself around the nearest roof rod and Lucy's body was yanked off its original course and swung to the safety of the top of the roof. Lucy sank to her knees on the roof, her heart pounding so hard she was sure that Natsu and Wendy could hear it. The two half-dragons in question were dropped on the roof by their feline friends and immediately rushed over to Lucy.

"Lucy!" Natsu shouted.

"Lucy-chan, are you okay?" Wendy asked, "We're sorry we left you on that roof, but Carla and Happy can only carry so many people!"  
Lucy smiled softly. "It's fine. It's a good thing that my spirits are looking out for me."

Natsu, who had dropped to Lucy's level, raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"  
Lucy held up her new weapon. "It's a gift from my spirits since Brain destroyed my other whip. This one's magic though."

Natsu's expression lightened after darkening at the mention of the master of the Oracion Seis.

"That's cool Luigi!"

"ARE YOU SERIOUSLY DOING THAT AGAIN!?"

Natsu clapped his hands over his ears. "Owww~ Lushi, enhanced hearing, remember?"

Lucy huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "That's what you get for calling me Luigi."

The clearing of a throat, drew Lucy and Natsu out of their quarrel.

"You two can sort this out later. We should be focusing on who it was that made the building topple over." Carla scowled.

"We should ask the others if they're okay." Wendy pointed out, "They could have been attacked too."

"But the telepathy link was broken." Happy noted.

Lucy looked at Natsu. "Natsu, did you hear any other explosions. You and Wendy have better hearing than the rest of us."

The pink-haired half-dragon tapped his chin thoughtfully for a minute.

"I think there were several other explosions at different spots." he muttered, "Did you hear anything Wendy?"

"Um...well, I-I didn't hear that much. I just heard the explosion that took the tower down." the blue-haired girl stuttered, "I-I'm sorry!"

"It's alright child. Don't blame yourself." Carla scolded.

Natsu patted Wendy's head roughly, but affectionately. "Yeah. Don't blame yourself. Even us half-dragons can't hear everything."

A small scuttle from over the side of the building caught Lucy's attention. She stiffened, but cautiously glanced over the side of the roof. There was nothing there. The tension in her shoulders relaxed, but then the collar of her shirt was grabbed and the Celestial Mage was yanked back just in time to avoid having her face bitten off by a monster with very sharp teeth.

"We're under attack!" Natsu shouted.

"Thank you captain obvious, I think we can see that!" Carla spat sarcastically.

About a dozen monsters clawed their way onto the roof, making a loose circle around the small group. They were unlike anything that Lucy had ever seen before. They were each the size of a small magic mobile, had long pitch black fur that stood on end like they were electrocuted. Wicked sharp claws raked against the stone as they circled them and equally sharp looking teeth glinted in the moonlight as the creature's lips curled back in a snarl. The tail was about three feet long and unlike the rest of the body looked like bare, pink skin that had rows of glowing red-orange lacramas embedded into the skin.

The first creature tensed and pounced, mistakenly at Natsu. His usual red scales emerged and flames ignited around his fist as he punched the monster in its snout. Bones and cartilage crunched and teeth flew out of the creature's mouth under the harsh blow and the creature immediately jumped back, pawing at its now potentially broken nose. However, Natsu seemed a bit more winded after the attack. His breath was coming out a bit harder even though the attack should have only taken minimal effort on his part.

Lucy scowled at the creatures. Something was wrong here. Her hand edged towards her key ring and as the next creature pounce, this time at her, she called out Sagittarius. The horse-man archer shot at the creatures, but even though the arrows embedded themselves in the creature's skin, they seemed unfazed by them and turned on the Celestial Spirit. As soon as their teeth and claws touched Sagittarius vanished.

"Sagittarius!" Lucy cried.

Suddenly she felt drastically drained. Her reaction time had slowed greatly and before she knew it, one of the creatures had knocked her to the ground and sunk its teeth into her shoulder. Lucy cried out in pain as blood gushed out from between the creature's teeth. The longer the creature's teeth were buried in her shoulder, the weaker she became. Like all her energy was being drained out of her. When the weight of the creature on her back and the searing pain of its teeth left her as they were dragged out of her skin, she could barely muster the strength to stand.

"Lucy, are you okay?" Natsu asked.

"Don't...let the….teeth...or cl...aws...touch..you." Lucy forced out.

Lucy dropped to her knees, clutching the injury on her shoulder. Suddenly Wendy was at her side healing the bite. Or trying to at least.

"I-It's not healing!" she exclaimed.

Wendy kept trying, but the bleeding only slowed to a steady stream. Which was an improvement from the gushing waterfall. But Wendy wasn't satisfied and kept trying.

"Don't over extend yourself child. You're using up too much magic." Carla scolded.

"I have to...do something!" Wendy puffed.

Wendy suddenly teetered over and Lucy caught her before laying her next to Carla, who shook her head in disapproval. Lucy drew in a few deep breaths and stood up, brandished her whip and ignored the stabbing pains shooting through her shoulder. Natsu was already fighting, and he was carefully evading the creature's teeth and claws like Lucy had warned him. However, one was coming up behind him and he was too preoccupied with the two in front of him that he was vulnerable to the sneak attack. Lucy lashed out her whip and the bright blue ribbon of magic lashed around the beast's neck and with a strong yank, it was flying off the roof.

Natsu seemed to notice Lucy's action and flashed a quick grateful smile at her before ducking under a pouncing creature and nailing it in the stomach with a flaming kick.

The battle dragged on but the creature's numbers didn't seem to dwindle. Suddenly, something orange rolled at Lucy's feet. Briefly she paused and stared at the strange sphere. Until it started glowing. From previous experiences and books she'd read, she knew for a fact that glowing was generally _bad_. In one swift kick, the sphere went flying into a heap of the creatures and a few seconds later, exploded.

"Yep. Glowing is bad." she muttered under her breath, "I think we know who toppled the tower earlier now..."

Lucy glanced at the clock ticking in the back of her mind. It had only been five minutes and she was almost dead on her feet. She had point-blank, no magic left in her at all. The creatures had gotten her a few too many times with their claws.

A rain of the same orange spheres fell from the sky, with her energy mostly gone, Lucy's moves were sluggish and she couldn't get out of the way before seven or more of those spheres exploded against her chest. In the back of her mind she wondered how she was still in one piece as she fell backwards over the side of the building.

Lucy was falling head first towards the pavement and she couldn't do anything about it. She was too tired, too drained. The Celestial Spirit mage squeezed her eyes shut in anticipation of a harsh impact, until she suddenly turned upright so hard that her head spun.

"Lushi, you should stop falling off buildings." a jeering voice lectured lightly.

"Happy!"

The blue cat flew Lucy back up to the roof, but by the time they got back up there, almost all the creatures were destroyed with Natsu making a final stand. An explosion lacrama soared through the air at Natsu's turned back. Lucy opened her mouth to warn him, but he snatched the glowing orb out of the air without even turning and chucked down the throat of the beast in front of him, imploding the creature. The rest of the beasts went in similar ways, and when the dust had settled, Natsu was still standing. Looking somewhat tired, but barely fazed.

Happy set Lucy on her feet again, she stumbled briefly before regaining her balance.

"Natsu...are you okay?" she croaked.

The pink-haired half-dragon turned towards Lucy and flashed the same toothy grin she had grown used to. Then he seemed to notice how beat up she was.

" _I_ should be the one asking _you_ that." he said, scowling at her wounds.

Lucy looked down at herself, her outfit was rags and blood was trickling down her body from the cuts and bits. Strangely she wasn't fazed by this. In fact, she was indifferent about it. Wendy was up again and she managed to heal both their minor wounds, but the bite in Lucy's shoulder still refused to heal completely.

"I'm sorry, but that's going to leave a scar." Wendy announced sadly.

Lucy stared at the jagid raw pink lines running across her shoulder. These would indeed leave a scar, but even though it made a knot of sadness tie itself in her stomach, at the same time she didn't really care.

Natsu's eyes didn't leave the twin lines in her shoulder. Lucy could see several emotions expressed in his face, but the most prominent one was guilt. The Celestial mage's expression sank slightly as the half-dragon's obsidian orbs met her chocolate ones.

"Don't feel guilty Natsu. The creature bit me. Not you."

"But-"

"Nope. No buts. It's not your fault, end of story." Lucy said sternly, cutting the half-dragon off.

Natsu opened and closed his mouth, at a loss for words, which in itself was unusual for him. Lucy held her stern look until the pinkette sighed in defeat.

"I just can't beat you in an argument." he huffed, crossing his arms over his chest, and turning his head away from her in an attempt to cover his embarrassment.

Lucy grinned brightly. "That's because I'm right."

Natsu glanced at Lucy again. "You're clothes are rattier than usual Luce."

Lucy raised an eyebrow at the half-dragon. His clothes weren't any better. Heck, they were almost worse. Before she could say anything, Virgo came to the rescue, bringing with her two outfits from the Celestial Spirit World for Lucy and Natsu. Questionably, they were a matching set.

After they'd gotten changed (in different areas of course, Wendy and Carla made sure Natsu wasn't peaking like usual), Lucy checked the clock in her head again. Ten minutes now.

"We should get going and destroy those lacramas." Lucy announced, standing up with new strength.

"But we don't know if everyone else is okay." Happy pointed out.

"The tom-cat is right." Carla agreed, "The others could have been ambushed by similar creatures. Who knows how many of us are left."

Lucy clentched a fist. "Don't underestimate them. They're strong. I _know_ they're alright."

Natsu nodded. "Yeah. Have faith in them. Let's focus on doing our part."

Wendy stood, determination written on her young face. "We have to destroy those lacrama or Nirvana is going to destroy Cait Shelter, and I'm not going to let that happen!"

"Alright. It's settled then." Natsu grinned, "I'll take the first lacrama."

Lucy chimed in. "I'll take the second."

 _ **"I'll take the third then."**_ a cool voice said in Lucy' head.

Natsu groaned. "Oh great, ice princess is back in my head again."

 _ **"Not like there's much in here."**_ Gray scoffed sarcastically.

 _ **"Gray, Natsu! Focus!"**_ Erza boomed, _**"We don't have much time before the telepathy link fails!"**_

 _ **"A**_ y _ **e**_! _ **!**_ "

 _ **"We don't have much time to stop Nivana, oh yeah! I will destroy the fourth lacrama to avenge Jura-san."**_ Hoteye said, sounding determined.

 _ **"I will handle number five."**_ Erza stuck her claim.

"I'll destroy the last one!" Wendy pipped up, "Please! I have to defend my guild! This is all my fault anyway!"

"Wendy, we've been over this. It isn't your fault." Lucy reassured.

 _ **"Lucy is right."**_ Erza agreed, **_"No one is to blame for Nirvana's unsealment."_**

 ** _"Right now we've gotta focus on taking it down before it can cause some real damage."_** the ice-maker mage added.

"Then let's stop wasting time and get at it!" Natsu exclaimed.

 _ **"A warning to you all. Brain is still out there. I can sense his power with my**_ **Heaven's Eye _and he has stationed himself at one of the lacramas."_** Hoteye warned.

 _ **"Correct Hoteye."**_

 _ **"Well speak of the devil**_ **."** Gray muttered.

 _ **"I'm impressed you puny mages were able to withstand my creations, but I highly doubt that any of you are strong enough now to take me on."**_

"Wanna bet!? I'll com down there right now and beat you to a bloody pulp!" Natsu roared.

Brain laughed mockingly. _**"Then come, son of Igneel."**_

And with that final taunt, Brain dropped out of the telepathy link, leaving the Aligned Forces seething with rage. Natsu most of all. Lucy was still about 9 feet from him, but she could easily feel the waves of heat rolling off him.

Lucy glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. His expression was calm, but she could see the fury glowing in his eyes. What had Brain done to him in the past that made him so angry? Once again, she wanted to ask, but at the same time respect the half-dragon's privacy. He'll tell her when he was ready. No sense in pushing it.

Gray was the first to speak up. _**"Well what're we waiting for? A red carpet? Let's go kick that guy's-"**_

"Don't you _dare_ use such vulgar language in Wendy's presence or I will claw your tongue out!" Carla threatened.

 _ **"Still, Gray is right. We don't have the luxury of time."**_ Erza agreed, _**"Nirvana is growing closer to Cait Shelter with every minute we spend dawdling."**_

"And there's less than 10 minutes left on Hibiki's countdown." Lucy added.

"For once I agree with underwear princess. What're we waiting for? Let's go bash some heads! I'm all fired up!" Natsu exclaimed, excitement in his voice.

 _ **"Natsu-san is correct."**_ Hoteye chimed in, _**"We have our assigned lacramas, so let us go forth and destroy them for the sake of love!"**_

"Hoteye-san's right too." Wendy said, "We're going to have to hurry."

"But one of us is going to have to fight Brain." Lucy pointed out.

"No problem. We'll send that guy packin', no matter which one of us it is." Natsu smiled confidently.

Lucy swallowed, secretly hoping that she wasn't the one that had to take Brain down. Her magic power was all but drained, so she couldn't summon any of her spirits to help her. But if she couldn't do that, how was she going to destroy the lacrama? Lucy clutched her fists. She was going to do it. She didn't know how, but she was going to do it somehow.

"Then let's stop wasting time." Lucy said, extending her whip, "Let's take Nirvana out! Good luck everyone!"

 _ **"Good luck!"**_

The presence of the telepathy link dropped as Lucy swung from building to building. Every muscle in her body protested loudly, but she did her best to block it out. She couldn't let her friends down. They were all counting on her.

"I can do this! I _have_ to! For Wendy's guild, and the sake of the world!"

...

 **Natsu's POV :**

…

Natsu had to admit, Lucy never ceased to amaze him. Even with almost all her magic drained and wounds that severe, she still bravely forged on. The pink-haired half-dragon couldn't wait to get to the lacrama. His thoughts were wandering and he still couldn't help but feel that she got hurt because of him. Three times, today alone, she had almost died because he so selfishly asked her to help him unlock his heart.

Three times. Because of him. Because of her relationship with him.

Natsu shook the thoughts from his head. He couldn't have thoughts like this right now. Natsu knew that Brain was at his lacrama. That's why he chose it. With his senses, he could smell Brain's stench a mile away.

When Natsu reached the entrance to the lacrama, his suspicion was confirmed. At the base of the lacrama, there stood Brain. Staff in hand and clothes torn, but otherwise in one piece.

 _Jura tried to take him down, but he couldn't and he's a Wizard Saint!_ Natsu thought bitterly, _What kind of trick did Brain use?_

The dark guild master faced Natsu, a smug smirk plastered on his face. Natsu was familiar with this smirk. All too familiar.

"Natsu. So glad you came to join me."

Natsu gritted his teeth, his scales pulsing under his skin, eager to come forward. "You b******. Why do you want to destroy Wendy's guild?"

Brain laughed throatily. "It isn't that I specifically want to destroy that guild. Wiping Cait Shelter from the map is a mere trial run. A method of testing the extent of Nirvana's power."

"That's the dumbest reason I've ever heard!" he shouted, igniting his fists, "I know you like destroyin' stuff but this is just messed up!"

"The only 'messed up' thing here is that Cait Shelter kept this wonderful power hidden for 400 years. Now I will put it to good use."

"I won't let you!" Natsu shouted, "I won't allow you to take away the futures of so many people!"

 _Not like you did to her_. He thought.

Brain seemed to think the same thing. "Are you still upset about your little girlfriend? What was her name again? The girl had a lovely scream."

"Lisanna." Natsu mumbled, "Her name was _Lisanna_! And you took her _life_ away!"

Natsu exploded forward, no longer able to keep himself contained.

"ENOUGH TALK! WE FINISH THIS HERE!" he yelled, his scales finally surfacing, " **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!** "

Natsu swung his fist hard at Brain. Who simply caught the attack in his hand. Natsu's expression flashed surprise then anger. The flames grew hotter and larger until ribbons of orange-red were licking at Brain's face.

 **"Fire Dragon's ROAR!"**

Fire tore through the air and slammed Brain in the face, sending him flying into the lacrama's base and creating a deep crater in the stone. But the man almost immediately bounced back.

 **"Dark Carpriccio!"**

A dark beam flared from the stone in the staff's mouth at Natsu. He quickly ducked backwards under the spell and roared again, breaking the spell up.

Dust flew up in a massive cloud. Even if the dust stung his eyes, Natsu could still pinpoint Brain's location from his scent.

 **"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"**

The sphere of fire tore over the ground, dispelling the cloud of dust as it went. But it missed mark. By an inch.

"You have improved greatly since we last crossed paths, but I'm afraid that we will have to part ways now. Permanently."

Wind swirled harshly around Brain and the air turned almost frigid. Brain's eyes turned a terrifying red as his magic aura flared to life around him.

"Now witness the spell that struck down a Wizard Saint! **Dark Rondo**!"

Tendrils of dark green energy swirled in a terrifying vortex from Brain's staff, then he fired it straight at Natsu. The attack burned through the ground at such a speed that the half-Fire Dragon couldn't leap out of the way in time.

The pain that tore through him was unlike anything he'd ever felt before. It was like his limbs were being torn off piece by bloody, painful piece and his guts were being knotted then ripped open. So in other words, it really hurt.

Natsu fell backwards onto the floor, feeling completely raw and beaten. Brain laughed in amusement.

"Your body is still in one piece? Quite impressive considering I made this spell stronger than the one I used on the Wizard Saint. You are quite a testament to the shear strength of dragons."

Natsu strained to move himself. To get up. But it felt like the spell shredded his muscles. He couldn't move. He was too tired and beaten up. The fight with those creatures was finally taking its toll on him.

 _No! I can't give up!_ Natsu protested mentally, _Everyone's counting on me! I can't kick the bucket now. Dying can wait until after this is over! Until after I've avenged Lisanna!_

His mental pep talk pumped much-needed strength into the half-Fire Dragon. Slowly, but surely, he pulled himself to his feet.

Brain looked in complete shock at the feat.

"Y-You're standing!? How!? You should be too injured!"

"These injuries...they're nothing compared to what I'm going to do to you…" Natsu growled, "You killed Lisanna...one of the first people I could have considered a friend...you took her away from me...before we could start that friendship…"

Natsu straightened up and growled.

"And that wasn't enough was it? 'Cause today...you tried to kill Lucy…"

"The blonde girl? Ah, yes. She was quite an interesting girl." Brain noted.

"...You just love to take away...everyone I ever care about…" Natsu growled, "You made people...think I was a monster..!"

Brain chuckled darkly. "You _are_ a monster Natsu. Half human. Half dragon. You're a freak of nature!"

"Lisanna and Lucy didn't think that." Natsu said calmly, "They didn't care _what_ I was. They only cared about _who_ I was."

Natsu dug deep into every ounce of power he had left in his body and pulled it all out, summoning all his remaining strength. The air itself seemed to burn around him as flames slowly leapt to life around him.

"I refuse to have you take that away from me a second time."

Brain looked at Natsu in pure horror. A look that he was sadly familiar with. Natsu was secretly surprised himself at how much power he was finding in himself even though he had fought two hard battles in quick succession. Ethernano from the surrounding area seemed to soak into Natsu's body. It wasn't just his own strength, but something inside him felt like it was awakening and sucking all the power up like a great, hungry vacuum. Whatever was drawing all this power in, it must have something to do with his dragon blood.

Brain seemed to recognize exactly what was happening to Natsu and he muttered two simple words.

" **Dragon Force.** "

Stone cracked under Natsu's feet as he exploded forward and nailed Brain in the chest with a hard head-butt before landing several hard, quick punches and kicks on him before igniting his fist and slamming it into Brain's face. The dark guild master went flying into the wall, staff clattering out of his hands.

 _The staff! All his spells are channeled through that! If I break it..._

Natsu inhaled deeply and released a massive funnel of white hot flames from his mouth at the staff. The wooden staff caught fire like dry kindling, but didn't quite break fast enough for Natsu's liking.

Brain desperately reached for his staff, but Natsu was there before him and stomped hard on the staff's shaft. Wood splintered and stone snapped under his feet. Brain gasped, apparently just realizing the gravity of his mistake.

He didn't have much time left. Natsu had to wrap this up quickly. Flames flared around Natsu and he flew forward, straight towards Brain.

" **Fire Dragon's Secret Art…** "

"Fool! Even without my staff, I can still destroy you!" Brain bellowed, " **Travelers of the Void, devour this man's soul so he may become one of you: Genesis Zero!** "

Thousands of black phantoms swirled from Brain's outstretched hands, flying with deadly speed at the pink-haired half-dragon in a massive tidal wave of screaming souls. The sheer number of them was enough to knock Natsu off his feet and he was swept along the current until he dug his heels back into the ground, flaring every bit of power he could scrap up. Even if it was **Dragon Force** it couldn't last forever. Natsu didn't have much power left in him. Had he really burned through that much power already?

In the back of his mind, Natsu recalled the conversation that he had with Igneel about **Dragon Force**. Gosh, that felt like so long ago.

Igneel told Natsu that **Dragon Force** is an ultimate technique that only a half-dragon can execute. It is a power fueled by a deep, low burning righteous fury and the unwavering desire to protect. The only drawback was even if it did pull pure Ethernano from the air to empower the user, it quickly burned through the acquired power if handled by someone as inexperienced as Natsu. And he never had achieved a **Dragon Force** before.

The phantoms whirled around him, trying to pull him apart, trying to drag him into the void. Flames roared around him like an angry inferno. Phantoms burned to ashes around him as the half-Fire Dragon waded through the darkness.

It felt like trying to walk through water, but it quickly became easier and easier until he was sprinting through the ranks of phantoms. Brain's face became visible as the last of the souls were burned away. He was completely dumbstruck.

"H-How…!"

" **...Crimson Lotus Phoenix Blade!** "

Magic surged through Natsu's body like a lightning strike and propelled him at Brain, slamming him hard in the gut and sending him flying into the lacrama, Natsu pushing harder and harder until the crystal shattered. Mentally, he glanced at Hibiki's countdown clock, it had reached zero. The half-dragon held his breath for a moment. Had he messed up and destroyed it too early?

But much to his relief, the lacrama stayed broken.

"Phew. I didn't mess up."

With the task done and his fury burned through completely, his **Dragon Force** dissolved along with the remainder of his strength. Natsu toppled over and into unconsciousness.

...

 **Lucy's POV (a minute earlier):**

…

Lucy was completely exhausted. She didn't even have the strength to move anymore. Only a minute remained on Hibiki's countdown clock, and Lucy couldn't do anything. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes.

She felt so useless. Lucy had passed out three times alone today and almost died more times than she could count. She had tried her hardest and when it came down to it, she didn't have an ounce of strength left.

The blonde mage was leaning against a wall in the hallway before the lacrama. Her legs had given out on her here. But she still tried to inch her way towards the lacrama and scrap up every last shred of magic in her beaten body. Just enough to summon one spirit for one minute.

"I can't do it in time." she whispered to herself, "I'm not strong enough. I'm sorry...everyone."

"Hey! Don't throw in the towel just yet!" a tiny voice coached.

"This isn't over 'til we say it is!" another chimed.

Two tiny figures puffed into existence in front Lucy, then turned into her.

"You need to smash that lacrama, right? Just tell us when and we'll take care of the rest."

"Gemini!"

With Gemini's help, she made it into the lacrama pit.

"Five seconds!" Lucy announced.

"Right. **Open! Gate of the Golden Bull: Taurus!** "

A flash of gold and a chiming bell signaled the arrival of the bull spirit, who mooed loudly, oogled at both Lucy and Gemini Lucy for a moment and asked what she needed help with.

Gemini Lucy pointed at the lacrama. "Destroy that lacrama now!"

"Right away, Moooiiss Lucy." Taurus mooed swinging his axe.

When the blade of the double headed battle axe made contacted with the crystal, it shattered on contact. No one dared move for a moment, all eyes on the broken remains of the lacrama, but it didn't start piecing itself back together. Lucy and Gemini Lucy cheered and high-fived each other and Taurus grinned before vanishing Gemini following in suit, leaving Lucy all alone. Just as the cavern started shaking violently and boulders fell from the ceiling.

The blonde mage didn't waste any time getting out of the room and with new strength sprinted as fast as she could down the hall. On her way there, she passed by a tunnel marked with the number "1".

"That's right. Natsu went to lacrama number one." Lucy mused, "NATSU! ARE YOU DOWN THERE!?"

There was no answer, but Lucy had a bad feeling growing in her gut. Before she could make a sound decision on whether to go in to check on Natsu or not, a boulder fell from above her, forcing her to dive into the tunnel. The boulder fell into the tunnel entrance, blocking her only known exit.

"No going back now." she muttered

It was really dark in the tunnel, so Lucy had to feel her way along the wall until it opened up into the lacrama pit. The lacrama in the pit was also destroyed, but on the stand where the lacrama once stood, covered in burns and unconscious was Brain. Lucy gasped and looked around the room for a familiar head of pink hair. The Celestial Mage's eyes fell to the base of the lacrama. The ground trembled again and she tumbled over the edge of the pit, rolling halfway down the sloping sides until she stopped herself, no doubt skinning her hands in the process.

Lucy shakily stood and stumbled over to the base, looking around it for any sign of her half-dragon friend. Until she found him unconscious and half-buried under fallen rubble.

"Natsu!"

Lucy ran as fast as she could (which wasn't very) to the pink-haired half-dragon, dove to her knees, and grasped him by his shoulders to pull him out. Luckily it wasn't as hard as she thought it would be. Natsu was heavy, unconscious and half-buried under stone, but somehow she managed to pull him out and sling his arm over her shoulder.

The blonde mage glanced around frantically, hoping for an exit when one miraculously came in the form of a sudden hole in the floor. Lucy hobbled over to it and glanced down. Big mistake. The ground was rapidly approaching and was a good 30 yards away. Lucy wasn't scared of heights, she was scared of falling long ways and getting crushed under 50 tons of stone. She glanced up at the ceiling. Several stress fractures were appearing. If she didn't leap out now, then she and Natsu would certainly be crushed by the impending cave-in.

Lucy gathered her courage and leapt.

She knew she didn't have much time to react, but she pulled Natsu as close as she could (even if it _did_ make her a bit uncomfortable) and dove hard to the left, where Nirvana _wouldn't_ crush them, rolled mid-air so her back would take the brunt of the impact and braced herself.

" **Ice-Make: Slide**!"

With that simple command, a slide of freezing cold ice made a rough impact with Lucy's back. But the journey down wasn't that bad and both she and Natsu made it to ground level without dying. Lucy opened her eyes (not sure when she closed them). Everyone else made it out okay. Even Jura. He was really beat up, but he was alive.

"That's the second time I've had to save you today." an ice cold voice said, "Don't I get a 'thanks' at least?"

Lucy chuckled lightly. "Thank you Gray. I'm glad everyone made it out okay."

"Not sure about 'okay', but we're all alive at least." Gray commented.

Lucy moved Natsu off her and sat up, wincing at the pain that washed over her as the adrenaline wore off. Her more serious wounds had started taking their toll. Wendy rushed up to her.

"Lucy-chan, you're hurt. I'll heal you."

Lucy weakly held up her hand. "No Wendy, Natsu needs your help more. He fought Brain, so he's definitely more hurt than me. I can wait."

Wendy stared at Lucy with wide eyes for a moment before turning her attention to healing Natsu. A ping of worry flashed through her. He looked awful. Lucy had never seen so many wounds on one person before. How the half-Fire Dragon was still in one piece, still _breathing_ was a mystery to her.

 _But at least we all made it out alive. It's over._

Sadly, that wasn't the case. The ground under them trembled, sending pebbles jumping and trees shaking.

"What's happening!?" Lucy asked, panicked.

"It's the Nirvana cannon!" Hoteye exclaimed.

Happy's eyes bulged out of his head. "Oh no! We forgot about the cannon!"

"How is that possible?" Gray demanded, "We destroyed Nirvana!"

"Yes, we did, but maybe the cannon had an independent power source." Erza offered.

"Whatever the case, it's going to fire!" Carla exclaimed.

Wendy gasped, "And it's aimed straight at Cait Shelter!"

Gray cursed under his breath. "How are we going to stop it? We can't get to the other side of this thing in time and even all together, we don't have enough power!"

A pit of dread exploded in Lucy's heart. As it looks, Cait Shelter was going to be destroyed despite their best efforts and there was nothing they could do about it. When all seemed lost for the small guild, as if by a miracle a white flash streaked across the sky and struck the front of Nirvana where Lucy assumed that the cannon was situated. An explosion followed soon after, a seismic wave rolling through the ground and a heavy blast of wind slammed into Lucy's face, almost knocking her over again.

 _ **"Phew. Four telepathy links in one day. This is getting tiring."**_ Hibiki's voice huffed sleepily in Lucy's head.

 _ **"You're the man Hibiki."**_ what sounded like Eve's voice complimented.

 _ **"Hmph. Sure."**_ probably Ren's voice grunted.

 _ **"That was too close."**_ a female voice commented.

"Thank you so much for saving my guild!" Wendy exclaimed, tearing up slightly.

 _ **"Not a problem Wendy."**_ the female voice said, _**"All in a day's work...for love!"**_

Everyone (with the exceptions of Hoteye and Natsu) sweat-dropped.

 _Great,_ Lucy muttered mentally, _Another weirdo shouting things about love._

"I'm curious though. How were you able to pull something of this magnitude off?" Erza asked.

 _ **"We managed to get the magic bomber to work and adapted everyone's magic into a concentrated cannon blast."**_ Hibiki explained.

 _ **"It was the power of the parfum that insured our success."**_ an all too familiar voice said.

Erza notably shuddered at the voice.

 ** _"_** ** _You're the greatest, sensei!"_** the Tri-men shouted gleefully.

 _ **"We will meet you back at Cait Shelter's guild hall. I don't think Hibiki can hold the link much lon-"**_

And with that, the link went slack, leaving an unusual silence in Lucy's head. It's weird how silent it gets in your head after a telepathy link gets dropped.

Erza was first to speak.

"We should head to the guild hall. I"m sure that we will be able to get some much needed rest."

Gray rolled his shoulders. "Rest sounds good. I'm beat."

"Will you be able to stand Lucy-san?" Hoteye asked, concern actually in his voice.

The blonde mage nodded and shakily got to her feet. Unfortunately, her legs suddenly gave out on her again and she toppled forwards, but something caught her before she hit the ground. Or rather _someone._

"Natsu-san! You shouldn't move like that!" Wendy exclaimed, panicked, "You're still really hurt!"

Natsu ignored the half-Sky Dragon's worried words and helped Lucy steady herself.

"You sure are clumsy Lucy." he joked.

Lucy chuckled, "Says you. And Wendy's right. You're really injured. Worse than the rest of us."

"So? Stuff like this never stopped me before."

And as fate would have it, the half-Fire Dragon teetered over himself.

"Remind me. Who was the clumsy one again?" Lucy asked jokingly.

"Forgot already? Geez Lucy."

The sound of someone clearing their throat broke them from their conversation.

Gray crossed his arms over his bare chest. "As entertaining as your little lover's display is, could we-"

The **Ice-Maker** Mage was interrupted by a hard hammer-fist to the head, courtesy of an angry Titania.

"Gray, how dare you break up their moment! Prepare to be punished!"

Gray broke into a cold sweat and high-tailed it to Cait Shelter with Erza hot on his heels waving a massive great sword in her hand.

"What was _that_ about?" Lucy asked, confused.

Natsu shuddered ever-so-slightly. "I dunno, but I almost feel bad for the snow pansy."

"You think you can walk now?" Lucy asked, changing the subject.

Natsu nodded and tried to support himself, but almost fell again until Lucy steadied him against her. Lucy chuckled a little.

"Looks like we're going to need to support each other."

Lucy could have been seeing things in the low light, but she could have sworn she saw Natsu blushing. Then he suddenly perked.

"Natsu...?"

"My back tingled." he muttered.

Lucy's eyes widened. "Your back? Isn't that where your wings would come out?"

Natsu nodded and grinned and the blonde mage smiled back. They were getting somewhere. At least this detour wasn't a total bust. As they hobbled back to Cait Shelter, Lucy couldn't help but feel that they were a step closer to getting Natsu his wings.

...

 **A/N: *wipes imaginary sweat off brow* Phew, that took FOREVER. I'm sorry I tricked you all yesterday with the Author's Note, but I wanted to explain why this chapter was taking so long. I hope it was worth the wait. Next chapter there'll be a bit of closure to wrap this arc up, then it's off to Hajimari!**

 **And the fate I have planned for our heroes *cackles eviliy* I'm going to have fun with this next adventure.**

 **See you awesome people next chapter!**


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: **Hello Universe! How have all you lovely people been lately? I hope you all didn't die of boredom from the wait because then no one would be around to read this chapter I've slaved over to bring you so you better enjoy it! I'm kidding though. I didn't really "slave over it", but I worked hard on it. Writer's block is a killer some times and it doesn't help that school's starting to kill me too. So sorry for keeping you guys hanging. Concentrating on this has been a challenge for me as of late since I'm having trouble with the stupid transition.**

 **Enjoy! Hopefully non-crappy writing!**

…

The members of Cait Shelter were really grateful for what the Aligned Forces, plus Natsu and Lucy, for stopping Nirvana. They all got their wounds patched up and by the time that was finished, they looked like mummies. Natsu and Jura were the first to get treated because their wounds were the most serious. As soon as they were patched up, Natsu conked out on a pile of pillows snoring like a chainsaw.

"He sure fell asleep fast." Lucy sweat-dropped.

Happy nodded in agreement, "Even someone as strong as Natsu has to hit the wall eventually."

"How are you feeling Lucy?" Erza asked while pulling her hair into a ponytail.

"Better. I'll be sore for a bit, but I think I can handle it." Lucy nodded, "What about you? You took a pretty bad beating too."

Erza smiled slightly. "Nothing I can't walk off."

Gray grunted in agreement. "Yeah, she'll be perfectly okay by the time we get back to the guild."

"By the way. How is things at the guild?" Lucy asked, sitting in a chair.

The ice mage shrugged. "Same as ever, except for Loke and Gajeel, they've been disappearin' a lot."

Lucy's eyes widened. "Gajeel!?"

"Have you heard of him Lucy?"

"Heard of him? We _met_ the guy. Actually, he's my best friend's boyfriend."

Erza froze, eyes widening like a cat's. "G-Girlfriend!?"

Gray roared with laughter. "Metal-head's got a girlfriend? How did that happen?"

"To be honest I don't know." Lucy sighed, "I won't pin someone as sweet as Levy as someone who's into 'bad boys'."

Gray stopped laughing. "'Someone as sweet as Levy'? What's she like?"

Lucy tapped her chin. "She's a real bookworm. She and I run a bookstore together….oh my gosh!"

"What is it Lucy?"

"I'm such a terrible friend!" Lucy exclaimed, "Levy's sick and I left her all alone when I went with Natsu!"

"I am very disappointed in you Lucy." Erza said, shaking her head, "Leaving your friend to fend for herself when she's terribly ill is a selfish thing to do."

Lucy deflated. "Don't remind me. I'll have to make it up to her."

Making up with Levy is rather simple though. Just get her a nice book and it's all good. But she still felt bad for leaving her best friend when she was so sick. Poor girl was puking her guts out last she saw her.

"Why don't you just go and visit you friend, Lucy-dono?" a wiser voice asked.

Lucy turned her head. The Wizard Saint was conscious and sitting up, though it looked like he was still in pain.

"Jura! You-"

The Wizard Saint held up his hand for silence.

"I am perfectly alright now Lucy-dono. I won't be a Wizard Saint if I couldn't handle a few bruises."

Gray crossed his arms. "I wouldn't call that a 'few bruises'."

"In any case, you need not worry about me." Jura reassured, "But back to the matter at hand, I believe that your problem will be easily solved if you simply visit your friend."

"That's true, but the hard part would be getting Natsu to go there." Lucy sighed, "I'm not sure if he'd want to go back to Hajimari just so I can visit Levy."

Erza tapped her chin thoughtfully before she spoke.

"Lucy, you said that you and Levy run a bookstore, correct?"

"Yeah, but I don't see how that's significa-" Lucy cutoff, "Oh. Why didn't I think of that?"

Gray leaned forward, clearly confused. "Think of what?"

"Our store has tons of different books from multiple regions. There's bound to be some text about dragons in there." Lucy explained, "I'm not sure if there's anything about half-dragons, but Levy is practically a genius so I'm sure she could help me figure something out."

The entrance curtain parted and a small group of people filed inside the med bay, all led by Wendy and Carla.

"Hello everyone. How are you all feeling?" the twelve-year-old asked politely.

"Fine thanks to you." Jura assured.

Wendy sighed in relief. "That's good. I was worried with how injured everyone was."

A white-haired man with the Lamia Scale embleem, probably Lyon, chuckled and patted Wendy's head affectionately.

"These wounds are nothing."

Eve, of Blue Pegasus, chimed in. "You should see the other guy."

Laughter vibrated through the small room before it settled down. Then Lucy noticed that someone was missing from their little group.

"Where's Hoteye?"

The good natured atmosphere turned gloomy with just those two words and Lucy immediately wished she could take them back.

"Hoteye was arrested with the rest of the Oracion Seis by the Rune Knights." Hibiki informed, sadness lining his words.

"What? But he's not a bad guy any more!" Gray protested.

"That's what we all said, but the Rune Knights would not be persuaded by our love." the magenta haired girl behind Lyon, most likely the last Lamia representative: Sherry, sighed dejectedly.

"You mean our argument?"

"That's too bad. Especially considering that we never could have succeeded without Hoteye's assistance." Erza said.

An air of sadness hung over the room, then something happened.

"What's everyone so gloomy for? I wake up and everyone's acting like someone died."

All eyes turned to the med-bed Lucy was sitting next to. Natsu was fully awake and sitting up in the bed, scratching at the bandages around his chest like nothing happened.

The half-Fire Dragon acknowledged everyone's eyes on him and his eyes widened.

"Someone didn't die, right?"

Jura shook his head. "No. No one died Natsu-dono. But Hoteye was taken in by the Rune Knights in addition to his former guildmates."

The pinkette growled, fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white.

"Those idiots! Hoteye's not like he was anymore!"

"Doesn't look like they cared." Lucy murmured half to herself, "He's still a criminal in their eyes."

Natsu started to pull himself out of the med-bed, but Erza stopped him with a firm hand on his injured chest, rising a wince from him.

"Natsu. I know what you're thinking and we all are thinking it too, but even someone as strong as you can't take on the Magic Council."

"I've gotta try! They're putting Hoteye in prison even though he's a good man now!" he protested.

A hard blow in the side of the head from Gray toppled the half-Fire Dragon back into the bed.

"There's nothin' we can do about it now! When the Council says something's black it's black even if it's white! A handful of mages sayin' otherwise isn't gonna change their minds!"

Natsu hauled himself upright again, eyes downcast. Lucy understood what he was thinking, or at least she thought she did. He isn't a normal person. He's a half-dragon. Meaning he's something new, something different and not everyone likes new and different. All his life, he's probably been labeled as something that he isn't: A monster, a freak, an abomination. Even if the opposite is true and he's none of those things.

He could be thinking that it wasn't fair to Hoteye to try to force a label on him, to make him seem like something he really isn't.

Deep down, Lucy understood that. More than she'd ever admit.

Silently, the blonde mage stood up and walked around to the other side of the med-bed and sat on the edge of it next to Natsu. The half-dragon's eyes darted for a moment to identify the new presence sitting next to him before snapping back to the floor.

Lucy drew a shaky breath and spoke.

"It isn't fair. Is it?" she asked, almost whispered, "It isn't fair that the Council is labeling Hoteye as something he isn't."

Natsu remained silent, but Lucy could feel the agreement between the two of them.

"And the reason you're so dead set on stopping them, is because people have done that to you too. Haven't they?"

The silent agreement between them took on a twinge of pain. Her words died in her throat, realizing she'd been prodding an old, painful wound in the half-dragon's heart. Immediately feeling guilty, Lucy cast her own eyes to the floor before she spoke again, this time only speaking at a volume that only a half-dragon like Natsu could hear.

"I'm sorry Natsu." she whispered, "I shouldn't have brought that up."

Natsu's head shook side-to-side. "No Lucy. It's okay. You were just trying to help."

The breath in Lucy's lungs hitched suddenly. Such sadness lined his voice that she could almost hear the pain he had felt over the years. A cocktail of emotions filled her as well. Understanding, sympathy, and anger. Anger at the people who made him hurt so much. This Natsu wasn't like the one she was used to. The Natsu she knew would joke around and get on her nerves. And it hurt her that he was hurt.

Erza seemed to sense it as well and smiled sympathetically.

"You aren't alone anymore Natsu."

The half-dragon flinched slightly.

"You have all of us now. It doesn't matter to us that you're not fully human, just like it doesn't matter to us that Hoteye was a criminal."

"We will do everything in our power to assist him." Lyon chimed in.

"Hoteye-san is being wrongly convicted, there's no way Cait Shelter will stand for that after he helped save us." Wendy said, determination in his voice.

"I suppose he wasn't all that bad." Ren agreed in a tsudere way.

"A fellow comrade is in a predicament. That will now fly with Blue Pegasus."

Lucy grinned slightly. "See? We all support you Natsu, even if we don't fully understand where you're coming from."

"Don't think you have to take the whole world on without us flame brain."

Natsu immediately perked up. "What'd you say ice pervert?"

"Maybe we should have Wendy check out your brain. You seem dumber than before!" Gray shot, getting up in Natsu's face.

"Are you two fighting?" Erza asked, her voice dangerously low.

"N-No ma'am!" Gray stuttered, sweat accumulating on his forehead, "W-We're best friends! R-Right Natsu?"

"Aye!"

Happy hovered above them, showing his disapproval.

"Hey! That's my line!"

"Happy #2 is back." Lucy sighed.

As strange as it was, it was an amusing sight to behold and the gloomy atmosphere that plagued the room seemed to have lifted. Natsu smiled again once he got over his terror of Erza and everything seemed like it was back to normal.

the next day

Lucy readjusted her backpack. It was much lighter than it was the day she and Natsu left Fairy Tail to journey to Cait Shelter, mostly because it had been about a week since they left Magnolia. Now they were getting ready to leave again, this time for Hajimari, the town where Lucy and Natsu met. Convincing the half-Fire Dragon to go to Hajimari actually wasn't as hard as she thought it would be, for which she was grateful, but she could see that Natsu was dreading going on the train that would take them there.

Everyone had gathered outside the Cait Shelter guildhall to see them off before they returned to their own guilds. Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus had already departed, leaving encouraging words were and the request to keep in contact behind before they vanished into the forest. Fairy Tail was the only guild from the Aligned Forces that remained, but it was time for Lucy and Natsu to depart themselves.

And Cait Shelter wasn't going to let them leave without a hearty 'thank you'.

"Good bye Natsu-san and Lucy-chan! Thank you so much for helping us! Gook luck finding your wings Natsu-san" Wendy cheered, waving at them.

The rest of the guild joined in with the half-Sky Dragon, shouting their own words of encouragement.

"Drop by Fairy Tail any time you two. You're both always welcome there." Erza smiled.

"Yeah. Flame dork and I have a score to settle." Gray said.

"YOU'RE ON ICE PRINCESS!" Natsu shouted, "I'LL BEAT YOUR-"

"Don't you even dare!" Carla growled pointedly, cutting the half-Fire Dragon off.

Natsu crossed his arms over his chest and huffed.

"I'm still going to run the ice cube into the dirt." he muttered.

"Dream on cinder head!"

"You wanna throw down right now you half-wit snowman!?"

"Natsu. Gray. Are you fighting again?" Erza asked darkly.

"N-No ma'am!"

"Aye!"

The blonde mage couldn't help but smile at the display as Gray and Natsu coward under the Titania's harsh glare, that is until it was finally time to go.

"We'll drop by some time. That's a promise! Have a safe trip home and say 'hi' to everyone for us!" Natsu said, finally breaking from his fear induced stupor.

Happy flew up into the air, level with Erza and waved his tiny blue paw at the pair.

"We will! We'll miss you Natsu and Luigi!"

"IT'S LUCY!"

Natsu clapped his hands over his ears. "Ow! Lucy! We've been over this!"

"The cat started it!" Lucy protested.

"Sure sure. Now let's go or we'll miss the train!" Natsu said, pulling Lucy along.

…

Lucy somewhat regretted requesting they go back by train. As soon as the vehicle started moving, Natsu tumbled out of his seat. He had broken into a cold sweat and his face adopted a sickly green hue. With some help from Lucy, the half-dragon finally managed to get back into the booth, but on Lucy's side so he didn't fall over again.

"Natsu, just lay down and go to sleep." she insisted.

Natsu groaned in response, and forced out a "why?".

"Because you'll be puking your guts out the whole trip if you don't and the train ride is five hours."

This time, they both groaned. Lucy hated long trips almost as much as Natsu did. Five hours of sitting with really nothing to do was going to be torture. But then again, Natsu had it worse.

Finally, he gave in and laid down across Lucy's lap and closed his eyes. At first, Lucy felt kind of embarrassed that Natsu was laying across her lap like that, but once the embarrassment ebbed away she really didn't mind.

It didn't take long for the half-dragon's uneven breaths to even out and just like that he was sleeping peacefully.

With Natsu asleep, that left Lucy's mind to wander. And it wandered directly to the event that transpired just before they entered the town. Gemini, Aries, and Scorpio visited her when Natsu was off getting water from the stream. The three spirits had been previously contracted to Angel, the Oracion Seis member that Lucy defeated. Since she was in jail now, their contract was broken and they wanted Lucy to be their new keyholder.

She accepted and it turned out to be a good deal for both sides. What shocked her was that Scorpio said that Lucy was the first keyholder they ever had that didn't treat them like people rather than objects.

As happy as she was to receive three more Golden Zodiac Keys, it made her sad to know that Celestial Spirits were treated so poorly by their owners.

A sudden shift in the weight in her lap snapped Lucy out of her thoughts. Her chocolate brown eyes snapped down to the sleeping half-dragon in her lap. Natsu had rolled over in his sleep and was now on his back.

He looked completely at peace, which was reassuring to the Celestial Mage. Lately he seemed to be tormented at night by things that he refused to talk about, even if he woke up screaming or crying. Luckily, that didn't happen often and stroking his hair seemed to help calm him down.

Lucy wondered why that helped, but she guessed it was because it reassured him that he wasn't alone.

…

By the time the train stopped, Lucy had fallen asleep herself. Lulled to sleep by the melodical rumble of the train's engine. The disappearance of this rumble stirred her from her rest, as well as revived Natsu.

As soon as the train stopped he bolted straight up and charged out of the train, completely forgetting both Lucy and his luggage.

The blonde mage sighed in a mix of amusement and annoyance before gathering up both her bag and Natsu's and joining him on the platform, where he was hugging the ground like it would disappear any moment.

His expression was that of a child on Christmas as he said."Oh sweet solid ground that doesn't move!"

"Natsu, you're making a scene." Lucy said, dragging the half-dragon up by his scarf, "The ground isn't going anywhere."

Natsu chuckled, embarrassment underlining his voice and stood up on his own before taking his bag back from Lucy.

"So where're we going?"

"My apartment. I have to go check on Levy."

Natsu groaned. "I thought we were here to find more information on half-dragons."

"We are, but Levy could help a lot. And I feel bad about leaving her when she was down with stomach flu."

Natsu shook his head in mock disappointment. "Geez Luce. That's selfish of you."

"I only left because you asked me for my help!" she protested.

Natsu huffed and rolled his eyes. "So what's this 'Levy' girl like?"

Lucy tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Well, Levy's a real bookworm. That's her most profound characteristic, but she's also very nice, mature at least until you bring up a book she likes and she's practically a walking library. Some times it's like she has whole books memorized."

"That's great and all, but why are we here?"

Lucy rolled her eyes at the half-dragon. "Because I'm sure we have books on dragons in the store and with Levy's help we could compile some theories from the information."

But by the time Lucy had finished her explaination, Natsu had already ran off in the direction of Lucy and Levy's store.

Lucy broke into a run to catch up to him and eventually did when they reached the bookstore. The Celestial Mage felt happy that she was back home and she could see some familiar things for once, but that feeling was quickly pushed aside when Natsu threw the door open, revealing...

...

 **A/N: Cliffhanger! Aren't I so mean? Sorry this update took so long, I'll try to update quicker, but no matter how I try, I cannot force creativity and I want to give you all quality writing. I hope the wait was worth it :)**


	17. Chapter 17

Natsu threw open the store's door to see a terrible monster hunched over what looked to be the remains of two human bodies, sniffing them relentlessly. Lucy's blood ran cold with fear as it set its beady eyes on her.

"I-It's horrible!" she stuttered, a hand flying over her mouth.

"Maaaaannnnn." the creature moaned, turning towards the front door.

Even Natsu looked frightened. "I-I always hoped it was a myth. Igneel once told me about the most horrible, disgusting, and terrifying creature that ever walked the earth. Even stronger than any dragon. It's a-It's a….ICHYIA!"

And faster than the duo could scream, the monster known as 'Ichyia' pounced on them and ripped them to shreads and then disappearing into the shadows, never to be seen again.

The End.

…

…

…

...

 **A/N: Ha ha. Hope you enjoyed the short crappy false ending. I felt like trolling you all. Don't worry! I would never kill my OTP. Not in this fic anyway.**

 ***clears throat* Hello Universe! Today's a great day to post another chapter of my favorite fanfic, so I'm gonna do it! So here's the TRUE new chapter!**

 **Enjoy!**

…

Natsu threw the store's door open and inside organizing the shelves, was an all too familiar person and his pet cat.

"Gajeel!?"

The half-Iron Dragon faced them, mild surprise crossing his features, but quickly settling to indifference. His companion was a different story as he clearly displayed his surprise.

"It's you two again. What are you doing here?" Pantherlily asked.

Natsu walked in and stood in the doorway. "What are _we_ doing here? What are _you_ doing here?"

Gajeel set the stack of books he was holding on the counter.

"Ain't it obvious? We're takin' care of the store while Levy's gettin' her rest."

Lucy sweat-dropped. He said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world. And it didn't help Lucy's guilt to hear that her friend was still sick.

However, her thoughts were interrupted when Gajeel got in her face.

"So what're you doin' here Bunny Girl?"

Natsu growled ferociously at the half-Iron Dragon, who so bluntly ignored him. Lucy however was frozen to the spot with fright. Levy's boyfriend was still as intimidating as the last time they crossed paths. She was sure he was going to do something to her until something else caught his attention

"Gajeel! What are you doing to Lucy?" a familiar voice demanded.

Gajeel's blood red gaze left Lucy and darted over her head at whoever stood behind her.

"What're you doin' here Shrimp? You should be restin'."

Levy scoffed in annoyance behind Lucy. "Gajeel, I've been fine for the last week."

"Not from what I've heard."

"It's just a sneeze!"

"And that's the beginnings of cold. So go back home before you catch one! You're so tiny that the virus could eat y'ah up."

Lucy turned her head and standing behind her was her best friend Levy, fully recovered and smiling.

"Hey Lu-chan. It's been a while. Having fun on your adventure?"

Lucy glomped Levy with a tight hug. "Levy! I'm so so so so sorry I left you when you were sick! I'm such a bad friend!"

Levy chuckled and patted Lucy's back. "It's fine Lu-chan. I understand, and besides, not too long after you left, Gajeel came storming into town and he helped keep the store running while I was held up in bed."

"Iron breath can actually run a store?" Natsu scoffed, "That's hard to believe."

The half-Iron dragon in question whipped around to face Natsu.

"I can run a store better than you Salamander."

Natsu growled back. "Don't call me that."

"Why? It ain't insulting to y'ah is it?"

Lucy wasn't sure how it happened, but within the next few seconds Gajeel and Natsu were trying to pound each other into dust, throwing dirt, papers, tables, chairs, and books every which way. Levy and Lucy swapped looks, sharing a mutual agreement before taking a deep breath.

"NATSU/GAJEEL! KNOCK IT OFF!"

And just like that, the two half-dragons stopped, freezing mid-punch.

"No fighting in the store, boys." Levy scolded.

"If you're going to fight, take it outside!" Lucy ordered, pointing at the door.

"But we don't wanna fight outside." Natsu whinned.

"Then don't fight at all."

Levy and Lucy glared the two boys down, and eventually they caved and crossed their arms at each other. That was until a pair of brooms dropped on their heads.

"What the heck Lily!" Gajeel roared.

"Yeah! What was that for!?" Natsu shouted.

The cute, little panther-like cat was not so cute and little anymore. He was now as tall as Gajeel and clearly built for battle.

"You and I can here to run the store in Levy's absence, not make a mess of the place." the cat said, disapproval in his voice, "Now it's your responsibility to clean up."

Natsu stood up to face Pantherlily, broom in hand. "Then why do I have to sweep!?"

"You are equally responsible. Besides. You'll never achieve your goal if you keep making a mess."

Natsu's angry expression melted to surprise, than embarrassment and reluctantly he started sweeping up the dirt he tracked all over the place while Gajeel started straightening the place up. In a puff of pink smoke, the giant form Lily had taken on had vanished and he was back to his usual cute size and hopped over to Levy and Lucy.

"My deepest apologies for Gajeel's behavior. He's usually more sensible than this."

"It's not a problem." Lucy waved off, "All sense usually goes out the window when Natsu's around."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean Luce?" the half-Fire Dragon in question demanded.

"Oh nothing~" Lucy hummed.

"Lucy! You're so mean!"

"How am I mean!?"

"You just are!"

"That's the lamest excuse I've ever heard!"

"Would you two stop bickerin' like an old married couple and clean already?" Gajeel asked, sounding both annoyed and amused.

Natsu looked at Gajeel like he had grown a second head. "'Old married couple'?"

Lucy gave the half-Iron Dragon a similar look. "Us?"

"Yeah, you. Now shuddup and start sweepin'. This place ain't gonna clean itself."

Lucy glanced over at Levy, who shrugged, a noteable smile on her pixie-like face. She walked by Lucy and started picking up books, leaving Lucy with little choice but to do the same.

"You half-dragons sure love to make a mess." Lucy muttered as she straightened the chairs.

"Not my fault bolts-for-brains decided to pick a fight with me!" Natsu called over his shoulder, clearly hearing her with his enhanced hearing.

Gajeel scoffed. " _I_ picked a fight with _you_? In your dreams Salamander."

The pinkette just about cracked his broom in half as he gripped it.

"I said don't call me that!" he shouted.

"What? 'Salamander'?" Gajeel teased, a wicked smile on his face.

"Yeah! Don't compare me to that predator flame mage!"

"'Predator flame mage'?" Levy echoed, "Lu-chan, what exactly did you get mixed up in?"

Lucy chuckled nervously. "It's a bit of a long story Levy-chan."

"Then tell it. You know those are my favorites."

The blonde Celestial Mage sighed in defeat and told the story from the beginning. About how Salamander had tried to attack her one night and Natsu saved her, about the deal they struck, about their journey to Fairy Tail and the new friends they made, about Salamander's reappearance, and about their run in with the Oracion Seis.

Levy listened intently the whole time and Gajeel even perked an ear in Lucy's direction. Especially when she mentioned Fairy Tail.

"Oh that reminds me Gajeel. You never said you were in Fairy Tail."

"How do you know that Bunny Girl?"

"Gray told me."

Natsu scowled. "When did that happen?"

"Oh yeah, you were out like a light at the time." Lucy mused, "Gray said Gajeel had been disappearing a lot lately."

Lucy could have sworn that the half-Iron Dragon started sweating a little.

"Well of course." Lily said, chiming in, "We had to make trips from Magnolia to Hajimari to visit Levy."

"You didn't tell 'em that's what I've been doin', have y'ah?"

Lucy laughed nervously. _Oh. I'm so dead._

Gajeel dejectedly slammed his forehead into the table he was sitting at.

"I'm never gonna hear the end of this. Thanks a lot Bunny Girl." he mumbled.

Natsu was roaring with laughter and almost fell off the counter (which he had taken the liberty to sit on).

As that was happening Levy turned to Lucy.

"I had no idea that you were traveling with the other half-dragon Gajeel told me about."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "You mean he didn't tell you I was there? I blasted him out of the sky."

"No y'ah didn't Bunny Girl! It was that mermaid spirit of yours!" Gajeel corrected.

"Still…"

"To be fair, Gajeel isn't the greatest with names at first. When we first met, he kept calling me 'shrimp'. He still does…"

"'Cause you're a shrimp, Shrimp." Gajeel laughed, patting her head affectionately, "I could just put you in my bag and take y'ah home with me."

The bookworm tried feudally to swat the half-Iron Dragon's hand away, finally she just gave up and tried a more direct approach.

Levy pointed a slender finger above Gajeel's head. " **Solid Script: Stone**!"

With a soft 'pop' the word 'stone' appeared above the half-Iron Dragon's head and dropped like well….a stone, landing with a hard 'thud' and forcing Gajeel into a faceplant.

Natsu toppled off the counter, clutching his sides. Even after he fell, his laugh continued to bounce around the building. Gajeel grumbled and heaved the stone off himself and sat up.

"Geez shrimp, did y'ah have to crack my skull?" he grumbled, rubbing his bruised head.

Levy 'humph'ed and crossed her arms. "It was the only way I could get you to stop patting my head like that."

"I thought y'ah liked that Shrimp."

"Not when you do it over and over."

As Levy and Gajeel discussed what they liked and didn't like, Pantherlily sat down next to Lucy on the table.

"So has your quest reapped any success?"

Lucy sighed resting her head on the tabletop. "Not really. Everywhere we went, we've been told that we had to find Natsu's soulmate."

"But you have no idea where to start looking, do you?" Lily summarized.

"No." Lucy groaned, "We came here hoping we could find something useful, but I'd forgotten how many books we have here and I don't think there's too many on half-dragons and finding soulmates."

"You think you can find a soulmate by readin'?" Gajeel laughed, "That's a laugh Bunny Girl. But you're in luck though. You won't have to do any research 'cause _that_ season is coming up."

Natsu's head peeked above the counter.

"' _That_ season'?" he echoed, "What's _that_ season?"

"Don't tell me y'ah forgot already. I told y'ah last time we met."

Natsu thought for a moment, then his eyes widened a little and he started chuckling nervously.

"I've never really had to go through mating season before." he admitted.

"You're hopeless."

"Hold on a moment." Lucy said, "'Mating season'? Why do half-dragons have a mating season?"

"We're half dragon. And since dragons have a matin' season, so do we." Gajeel explained, "It makes us feel attracted to our soulmate. If they're in the area, we're immediately inclined to go to 'em."

"Is that how you and Levy got together?" Lucy asked.

Gajeel nodded. "It was that time of year and I was in the area. Just couldn't stay away."

Lucy turned her attention towards Natsu. "How come you've never had to go through mating season?"

"It's a bit of a story Luce."

"Then tell it."

Natsu remained silent for a moment before he spoke. "I don't think I can."

"Why not? Can't be as bad as Bunny Girl's." Gajeel said, jabbing a thumb at her.

Lucy would have reacted with an angry comment, if she didn't see the haunted look in Natsu's eyes. Gajeel seemed to notice too and grunted.

"I see now. Civilization hadn't been too kind to y'ah."

The half-Fire Dragon sighed briefly before quickly walking to the door.

"I need to get some air." he mumbled.

The door opened and closed behind him, leaving behind three stunned people.

Gajeel sighed roughly and crossed his arms over his chest while leaning back in his chair.

"Poor Salamander." he mumbled, "Can't imagine how many towns he'd been chased outta to react like that."

Lucy was probably the most stunned out of the three of them. Her eyes were still fixed on the door that Natsu had so hastily exitted from. That feeling from the day before stabbed at her heart again. This time, mostly sympathy. She knew what rejection felt like. She knew how much it hurt, but she couldn't even fathom how much Natsu was hurting.

"Lu-chan! Where're you going?" Levy called.

The Celestial mage snapped back into reality, but she wasn't sitting in her chair anymore, she was running through the door. Her legs were moving on their own, like they suddenly had minds of their own. Running outside, the first thing that greeted Lucy was a downpour. Rain soaked her to the bone in seconds and she felt slightly foolish running around in the rain without an umbrella, but the damage had been done and she wasn't about to let Natsu be alone in this.

Gajeel's words echoed through her skull.

 _Can't imagine how many towns he'd been chased outta to react like that._

Why would people chase him out? He wasn't a threat to anyone. But no one must have seen past the dragon blood running through his veins to see his human side.

 _You're my first real friend since Igneel left me._

No one saw the damaged human, they only saw a monster.

 _Don't bother me while I'm working Lucy!_

 _B-But today's my birthday…_

Lucy's feet finally stopped. Her father was the same way. He didn't see her. He didn't see his daughter, he only saw his dead wife and he couldn't bare to see it. So he shut her out as much as he could.

The Celestial Mage's thoughts were broken when she realized where she was. It was the forest where she and Natsu had met up to leave on their quest. It didn't take long to find the person she was looking for since his sakura pink hair stuck out like a sore thumb.

She smiled sympathetically and sat at the base of the tree, directly underneath the branch Natsu was sitting on. She didn't say anything, she couldn't think of anything to say that would make it better anyway. 'I understand' and 'it's okay' are never enough to heal a wound. In reality, it just makes it deeper.

"You'll catch a cold Lucy. You should go back inside." Natsu said meekly from above.

"You will too silly."

"I'm half Fire Dragon. I don't get colds or get cold."

"Maybe not on the outside." Lucy pointed out, "I can't say that I understand what you're going through, because I don't. I'm not half-anything, so what would I know of the pain you've been put through? But I want you to know that you don't have to soldier through it alone anymore."

Silence hung between them for what felt like hours. By now, Lucy couldn't even feel the cold of the rain anymore. She just simply acknowledged its presence. Its sad, lonely presence.

"It's ironic." she said.

"What is?"

"It's raining."

"Yeah, and what's ironic about that?"

"I'm not sure."

"You're such a weirdo Lucy." Natsu chuckled.

"I am not. My hair isn't pink." she teased.

"It's not pink it's salmon!" he protested.

"Hmm.." Lucy tapped her chin, "No. I'm pretty sure it's pink."

"Luuussshhhhiiii! You're so mean!"

"I am not!"

"Yes you are!"

"No I'm not!"

"Are to!"

"Am not!"

"Are to! Are to! Are to! Are to!"

"Am not! Am not! Am not! Am not!"

"Are to! Are to! Are-hey Lucy?"

"Yeah Natsu?"

"Does this seem familiar to you?"

Lucy hummed in thought. "Now that I think about it, yeah it does."

"But from where?"

"Hmmmm."

"Hmmmm."

Lucy looked up at Natsu and he was looking down at her. They're eyes met for a moment and they started laughing.

"We're a real pair aren't we?" Lucy chuckled.

"Us? No way. You're too weird."

"Yeah, guess you're right. But it isn't because I'm weird, it's because you are."

"How am I weird!?" Natsu protested.

"You can't even think about a vehicle without getting sick! That's the epitome of weird."

Natsu huffed. "It is not, it's completely normal! "

"For you maybe." Lucy teased, "What about when Happy appeared? You screamed like a little girl."

"That was you Luigi."

"Oh? I distinctly remember you screaming too."

"You didn't shout at me."

"Huh? About what?"

"I called you 'Luigi' but you didn't shout at me."

The Celestial mage tapped her chin. "Hmm. I guess you're right. BUT IT'S LUCY! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU!"

Natus clapped his hands over his ears. "Ow! There it is!"

Lucy huffed and crossed her arms. "I'm starting to think you're doing that on purp-achoo!"

"Lucy? Did you just sneeze?"

Lucy sniffed. "No."

"Don't lie. You did! I told you you'd catch a cold sitting in this rain with me." he jumped down from the tree, "Why'd you come out here anyway? Stupid."

"I didn't want to leave you to sort this out by yourself."

"Huh? Why?"

"Well, we're friends aren't we?"

"...Yeah."

Lucy stood up, sweeping a lock of sopping wet hair out of her face.

"Then don't shut me out. I can't help you unlock your heart if you keeping it all inward."

His expression darkened ever so slightly. "Sorry Luce. It's a reflex."

Lucy chuckled, "Now that I understand."

"What?"

"Keeping what hurt you inside."

"Has someone ever hurt you?"

Lucy nodded. "A long time ago." she took a deep breath, forcing down the sob that was threatening to escape her lips, "It doesn't matter anymore."

A pair of warm hands clasped her shoulders.

"Lucy, you just told me not to shut you out, so don't shut me out."

No matter how hard she tried, Lucy couldn't meet Natsu's firm gaze. She knew if she did, she'd burst out crying.

"We should get inside. Or you'll catch a cold too."

Natsu grumbled for a moment. "Fine. But don't shut me out."

The half-Fire Dragon grabbed her hand and with surprising gentleness, pulled her towards the town. Lucy opened her mouth to speak, but a loud sneeze came out instead.

"Lushi, you're sick."

Lucy wiped her nose. "Yeah. I am. I knew I should have brought an umbrella."

Natsu snickered, but didn't say anything as they walked back to town. That is until a loud sneeze from the half-dragon shook the whole forest.

...

 **A/N: ...am I making them too mature? I feel like I'm making them too mature with all this heart-to-heart, inner turmoil stuff. Of course a running theme with this fic is that the wounds you can't see are the ones that hurt the most.**

 **Buuuuuuuttttttt I feel the need to make them dorky. That's it, next chapter is all going to be dorkiness! Prepare yourselves!**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Oh my gods. Guys. The view. THEY'RE OVER 9,000! Hah. I had to do that, and I don't even watch Dragon Ball.**

 ***clears throat* A little more important though, I'm going to be going through my story and doing some editing since I looked through my story yesterday and realized some bits didn't line up completely and next year I plan on entering this story in a fanfic writing contest on Inkitt that I had heard about from** **anncuban** **. Sorry to disappoint, but 7 days isn't enough time for me to come up with a quality AU, but I WILL do it next year. That's a guarantee.**

 **In the mean time, I'm going to finish this story and FREAKING POLISH IT UNTIL IT SHINES BRIGHTER, THEN THE FREAKING SUN!**

 **...I'd get a life, but I'm enjoying this one too much.**

 **Enjoy this chapter. BECAUSE IT'S FULL OF NALU FLUFF!**

 **Enjoy!**

...

Lucy regretted coming back to the apartment. The moment Natsu and Lucy walked through the door, Levy started lecturing them about running off in the middle of a downpour without umbrellas while Gajeel tossed towels over their heads and ordered them to dry off before they dripped all over the place and Lily simply welcomed them back while munching on a kiwi.

What didn't help matters was that both Natsu and Lucy caught a cold from thirty minutes in the rain. Natsu wasn't as much bothered by it as he was annoyed and had long since disappeared under an avalanche of used tissues at the base of her bed. Lucy on the other hand was sneezing her lungs out laying under several comforters, blankets, and tissues.

Levy and Lily had stepped out to get some cold medicine, and Gajeel was in the living room practicing his guitar. Leaving Natsu and Lucy alone in her bedroom to suffer from relentless sneezing and runny/stuffy noses.

"Being sick sucks." Natsu grumbled, emerging from his mountain of tissues, "This is all your fault Lushi."

"My fault!?" Lucy said, "You were the one that ran off in the rain!"

"You didn't have to follow me!"

"Yes I did!" she protested.

"Gajeel! Lucy's a stalker!" Natsu shouted.

A gruff voice came dully through the walls in response. "Putta sock in it Salamander!"

"I told you not to-ACHOOO!"

A monstrous sneeze crashed through the house and made the walls shake.

"Quit shaking the house Salamander!" Gajeel's muffled voice shouted.

"Quit being a-ACHOOO!"

Another sneeze shook the house, Lucy groaned and covered her head with her blankets. Her head was starting to pound and the noise was making it worse. When the Natsu's house-shaking sneezing finally ceased, Lucy's began.

 _"achoo!"_

"Lucy?" Natsu asked, though with his nose stuffed up it sounded more like 'Lishi?', "Was that you?"

"Yeah." she croaked from under the covers.

She half expected a 'bless you' from the half-dragon, but instead she got a roaring laughter coupled with a lung wrenching cough.

"Your sneeze is so cute! Do it again! Do it again!"

As fate would have it Lucy let out another tiny _"achoo!"_ , much to Natsu's pleasure as he roared with more laughter until he was coughing so hard it sounded like he was about to hork up a lung.

"You sneeze like a kitten Lucy! It's adorable!"

Lucy wasn't sure if she was hearing him right. Natsu didn't seem like the kind of person that used the words 'adorable' or 'cute' on a regular basis, so she risked a peek from under her covers.

And almost jumped out of her skin.

Natsu was _right there_. Just staring at her.

"Stare…..."

Lucy grabbed one of her extra pillows off her bed and slammed it in the half-dragon's face. He was caught by surprise and was knocked off balance before falling on his rump. Natsu stared at Lucy with wide onyx eyes, like a little kid who just got scolded for the first time.

Then he grabbed his own pillow and flashed a wicked fanged grin at Lucy, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"You just declared war Lushi! I'm all fired up!"

Lucy didn't even have enough time to think _"oh crap. I'm so screwed."_ when a pillow slammed into her face and threw her flat on her back. Even though it was a pillow, it hurt. Mostly because it was thrown at about 50 miles per hour.

The Celestial Spirit Mage's hand grasped the pillow roughly and yanked it off her face as jolted up, eyes blazing.

"Natsu! That was too hard!" she scolded.

"All's fair in pillow fights! I'm going to wi-ACHOO!"

Lucy threw the pillow in her hands at Natsu and hit him square in the face. Since she wasn't as strong as Natsu, it was only enough to make him stumble, but while he was distracted, she ripped a blanket off her bed and threw it over him and tackled him to the floor.

Natsu immediately started thrashing under Lucy's body weight.

"Get off Lushi! You're heavy!" he shouted through the woven blanket.

"I am not!"

"Yes you are! I can't even lift you!"

"That's a lie Natsu and you know it!"

In response, Natsu bolted up right and threw Lucy off, then tossed the blanket off himself. Revealing his was armed with the pillow she threw at him. Lucy dived to arm herself with a pillow of her own and raised a large pillow over her head just as Natsu was about to bring his pillow down on her head.

The impact was hard, but not as hard as the other strike. Feathers flew out of the pillow and tickled at Lucy's nose, raising a sneeze out of her.

Natsu laughed again, then rattled with coughs. Lucy took the opportunity to get out from under the half-dragon's strike and swung her pillow at the side of his head.

"That was a sneaky move Lushi!" Natsu complained.

Lucy smirked wickedly. "All's fair in pillow fights!"

"Quit mocking me!"

The half-dragon leapt at Lucy and tackled her to the ground, straddling her waist, and an evil glint shining in the pinkette's eyes.

" **Fire Dragon Special Technique:...** "

Lucy's heart dropped upon realizing what he was going to do. "Oh no."

"... **Tickle Torture**!"

Unlike last time, it actually was torture. For every roaring laugh that escaped her lips, a cough tore through her body. Natsu wasn't stopping anytime soon from the looks of it, and Lucy was too weak from laughter to throw him off or demand that he stops.

That was until the door was thrown open and a looming figure stood, silhouetted in the illuminated doorway. Natsu stopped tickling Lucy and her laughter broke into a fit of coughing.

"Looks like you two are having fun." a gruff voice noted, "I didn't paint y'ah to be that kinda person Salamander."

"It's not my fault! Lucy was bein' a weirdo!"

A vein pulsed in Lucy's head and her coughing stopped.

" _You're_ the one that's on top of _me_! How am _I_ the weirdo?"

Natsu crossed his arms in childish protest. "You just are Lus-ACHOOO!"

"Eww! Eww! Natsu! You sneezed on me! Gross!" Lucy protested, slapping his chest in a weak attempt to get the half-dragon off her.

The door to Lucy's bedroom closed and Natsu finally rolled off her and reached for the tissue box on Lucy's desk. Lucy did the same with the tissue box on her nightstand and quickly set to work wiping the snot off her. When her heart rate steadied, she noticed that Natsu was unusually quiet. Quiet with Natsu was not typically a good thing.

Lucy looked behind her and saw that the pinkette was sitting at her desk, a stack of papers in his hands. A stack of papers Lucy quickly identified.

"Hey! Don't read that!" she shouted.

Natsu looked up at her like a deer that got caught in the headlights of a magic mobile as Lucy tackled the pink-haired half-dragon and snatched the manuscript out of his calloused hands.

"Hey!" he protested, "I was reading that!"

"Yeah, well you shouldn't go snooping around in other people's stuff, you creep!" the Celestial mage retorted, clutching the papers to her chest.

"But it was good! I wanna read it." he whined.

Lucy blinked. "You...thought it was good?"

"Yeah. What is it anyway?"

"My manuscript."

Natsu cocked an eyebrow. "Manly-what?"

"Manuscript. It's a rough draft of a book I wrote." Lucy explained.

"You're writing a book?"

The blonde mage nodded, still clutching the papers to her chest.

"Can I read more of it? Ple-!"

Natsu was cut off by a fit of coughing. Lucy could do nothing but watch sympathetically as her friend's body shuddered as the coughs rattled through him. Ironically, when he stopped, she started.

"Lucy, quit copying me!" he whinned.

"I'm…*cough*...not!"

When the relentless tickle in her throat ceased, Lucy noticed something was missing. Her arms were empty.

"Hey!"

Lucy looked behind her and sitting on her bed was Natsu, reading through her manuscript with a completely absorbed interest. A creeping heat filled Lucy's cheeks, flushing them an embarrassing shade of rose red. She hated it when people read her incomplete work. She always felt it was terrible and refused to let anyone read it. Not that many people even knew she was writing, but that didn't make much of a difference.

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted, "Give that ba-achoo!"

The half-dragon snorted a short laugh and continued reading. Lucy saw no other choice but to take her manuscript back by force.

"Give that back Natsu!" she ordered, slamming a pillow into the half-dragon's face.

While he was distracted, she snatched the papers out of his hands and turned to face the center of the room. Big mistake. The moment her back was turned she was tackled from behind by someone who was much stronger and much heavier than herself and she was quickly weighed down to the floor, her arms pinned uncomfortably under her chest.

"Lucy! I wasn't finished!"

"I told you not to read it!"

"But I wanna!"

"Too bad!"

The door to Lucy's room opened again and Gajeel stood towering dominantly over the pair again from the doorway, his red eyes seemingly glowing against the his shadowed face.

"You just can't keep y'er hands off her, can y'ah Salamander?" he jeered.

"It isn't what it looks like!" he protested.

"Oh?" Gajeel asked, "Then what is it?"

"Lushi's being a meanie and won't let me read her manlyscript!"

"It's a manuscript and it isn't finished yet!" she protested, "Also, GET OFF!"

"Why?"

"Have y'ah even thought about how you're lookin' right now?"

Natsu looked up at Gajeel, clearly confused. "I'm sick, so I know I look terrible."

"You always look terrible Salamander, sick or not, but that ain't my point."

"What is it then?"

"You look like a predator." the half-Iron Dragon said flattly.

Natsu scoffed. "Well _duh_. I'm half dragon and dragons are predators." he said matter-of-factly.

"Not that kinda predator, Salamander."

The sakura haired half-dragon mulled the words over in his head for a moment, before it seemed to dawn on him. He removed himself from Lucy's back. Lucy remained laying on her stomach for a few moments before she arched her back. She winced when she heard it crack, but was relieved when she was able to sit up on her own.

Lucy glanced down at the stack of papers still harshly clutched to her chest and frowned. When she was tackled by Natsu, the papers had been folded and bent and now most of them had creases in them.

"What's the matter Lucy?" Natsu asked.

"The paper's all creased now." she noted sadly.

"It's just paper Bunny Girl. No need to cry over it." Gajeel scoffed, "And keep it down in here would y'ah? I'm gettin' sick of comin' in here and seein' y'ah tryin' to make out."

Lucy's face flushed. "That isn't what happened Gajeel!"

"Sure, sure. Just get back in bed the both of y'ah. Preferably separate ones."

And with that final jab, the half-Iron Dragon pulled the door closed, plunging the room back into its sleepy half-darkness.

Lucy felt the need to speak, but when she opened her mouth she started coughing until someone started to pat her back gently until the coughing stopped.

"Thanks Natsu."

"How'd y'ah know it was me?"

"You're the only other person in the room, dummy." Lucy chuckled.

"Hey. I take offense to that."

Lucy giggled and stood up. After she deposited the manuscript on her desk, she flopped down on her bed. A cold feeling creeped up her body and she shivered. That is until her bed sagged and a warmer presence laid down on the bed next to her.

"Scoot over Lucy." Natsu said.

"Why?"

"You're cold aren't you?"

"...Yeah. Why?"

"Then let me warm you up."

"Natsu, you don't need to." Lucy assured, "There are plenty of blankets."

"Yeah, but you're bed's way comfier than the floor."

Lucy turned her head to face Natsu. "You aren't moving are you?"

In response, the half-Fire Dragon flashed his signature toothy grin.

"Nope."

…

 **A/N: *smiles like an idiot* So? Dorky or what? Hope you enjoyed this, cause there isn't going to be this much fluff in one chapter for a while. It's time to get serious.**

 **See y'ah next chapter!**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Chapter 19, wow. Almost 20 chapters! That is insane! This has to be the longest fanifiction I've ever written and the most popular. To be honest, I have no idea that this story was going to be this popular! We're almost at 10,000 views! 10,000! And over 120 people have followed this story. For amateur authors like me, putting our work out there for all to see and judge is freaking terrifying so it means the world to me that people enjoy my writing and if I could give you all hugs, I would -w-**

 **Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the last chapter, because it's going to get serious from here on out. Natsu and Lucy are still going to be dorks, but there'll be less dorkiness ;-;**

 **OH! BTW! I'VE GONE THROUGH THE STORY AND ADDED A FEW THINGS TO MAKE NATSU'S HALF-DRAGON CHARACTERISTICS MORE EVIDENT AND ALSO SOLIDIFY SOME DETAILS!**

 **Just thought I'd warn you guys!**

 **Enjoy!**

…

Thanks to some well needed rest, some cold medicine, and some of Gajeel's (surprisingly good) home-cooking, Lucy and Natsu made a quick recovery from their colds and were ready for action. Gajeel still wouldn't let them live down what had occurred on the first day of their sickness, but his words quickly lost leverage on them because he used it on them so much.

Now they were in the bookstore, Lucy and Gajeel were running it while Natsu, Pantherlily and Levy were searching for any ancient texts on dragons. Levy knew the store better than anyone, making her the ideal person to help Natsu search for a book on dragons.

Lucy wasn't too thrilled to have to work the store with Gajeel, since he still was intimidating to the Celestial Mage. He kept glancing at her from the corner of his eye when he thought she wasn't looking and it was making her edgy to the point where she finally snapped.

"Why are looking at me?"

"Who says I'm lookin' at y'ah Bunny Girl?"

"I can see you glancing at me when you think I'm not looking." she said firmly, "And I want to know why."

The half-Iron Dragon grumbled. "Just tryin' to figure somethin' out."

"Figure what out?"

"It's none of your business."

"I think it is."

"Why's that?"

"You keep looking at me."

Gajeel snorted. "What? You think I'm tryin' to figure somethin' out about you?"

"Yeah. Why else would you be looking at me?"

Gajeel grunted and crossed his arms over his chest. Lucy fought back a victorious smile and continued pressing for information.

"What're trying to figure out anyway?"

"Are you gonna keep askin' until I tell y'ah?"

"Maybe."

The half-Iron Dragon growled in annoyance. "Fine. If it keeps y'ah quiet, I'm tryin' to figure out why Salamander likes y'ah so much."

"Huh?"

"Geez. And I thought Salamander was thick." Gajeel muttered, "Us half-dragons don't get accepted into society very easily. People're usually scared of us and think we're monsters."

"But you aren't!" Lucy protested, "All the true half-dragons I've met have been the opposite!"

Gajeel nodded. "That's almost always the case. Half-dragons can be rough around the edges, but we're still half-human. And people tend ta forget that."

"I still don't get with this has to do with my relationship with Natsu." Lucy said.

"Point is, Salamander's gotten the full force of this treatment and then some. Personally I find it odd that he'd accept y'ah so quickly."

Lucy turned the words over in her mind. Gajeel did have a point. As far as Natsu was concerned, she was just another person to scorn and reject him. Why _did_ he trust her so much even if he knew nothing about her when they first met. It was strange that he saved her from Salamander when they first met. The burning question in her mind was "why?".

"Maybe he could see that you were different Bunny Girl." Gajeel said.

"'Different'? Different how?"

"I can see it in your eyes. Y'ah don't care if someone's human or not. Do y'ah?"

"No...of course not. What someone is isn't nearly as important as who they are."

Gajeel nodded. "That's probably why Salamander likes y'ah. Y'ah treat 'im like a normal guy."

The half-Iron Dragon's red eyes drifted over to Levy and Natsu, who were on the other side of the small store skimming through the books lined up neatly on the shelves. Natsu looked hopelessly lost, but Levy helped point him in the right direction. Watching this scene now, Lucy knew that no matter what, she could never see Natsu as a monster. She even had trouble thinking that he wasn't human. He acted so...so normal. Occasionally irritating, but normal.

"Well to me he _is_ normal." Lucy murmured, "When he isn't fighting, it's almost impossible to tell he isn't human."

"'Cept for that god awful pink hair." Gajeel chortled.

"I think it suits him." Lucy shrugged, "Besides, you shouldn't be the one to talk about hair when your's is longer than your girlfriend's."

Laughter resonated through the building.

"You got 'im there Luce!" Natsu laughed.

"Salamander! Have you been listenin' the whole time?" Gajeel bellowed angrily.

"How couldn't I? You're both so loud!"

Levy giggled and looked over her shoulder. "My hearing isn't nearly as good as Natsu's, but I could still hear you guys. I think what you said was sweet Lu and I couldn't agree with you more."

A deep laugh rumbled in Gajeel's throat. "And that's why I like y'ah Shrimp."

"Even I must agree with Levy." Lily said, "That was very well said Lucy."

Lucy smiled proudly and Levy chuckled and continued explaining to Natsu about what kind of books there were in the store and where to find them, but the half-Fire Dragon looked hopelessly lost and kept stealing pleading glances at Lucy every once and awhile. Finally, the Celestial Mage gave in and walked out from behind the counter.

"Need some help?" she asked, amusement edging her voice.

Natsu groaned. "I don't know how you find anything in this place Luce!"

"It's called the Dewey Decimal System."

"Do We Decimate System? What kind of a name is that!?"

Lucy sweat-dropped. "Not the right one...and you aren't even in the right section."

"Whaaa!"

"Don't tell me you just noticed!" Lucy exclaimed, a sigh escaped her lips, "I think our ancient tomes are this way."

Lucy walked to the right along the side of bookcase until she reached a shelf of worn leather books. Each book was treated with the utmost respect, but even with the care that was placed in these books, there were still pages falling out every time they were opened.

"Hey Luce, I thought you said it was a bookstore. So why do you only have one of each book?" Natsu asked.

Levy's head popped around the corner of the bookcase, Lily perched on her head, and she offered the answer to the half-Fire Dragon's question.

"Well, in actuality, it's more of a miniature library. People come in and they rent the books for a few weeks or take them off the shelves and sit at one of the tables." Levy explained.

Lily nodded. "It would be too expensive for Miss Levy and Miss Lucy to buy twenty copies of all their books."

Natsu 'hmm'ed before his onyx eyes zeroed in on something on the shelf. Following his gaze, Lucy found what he was looking at. This tome was different from the others on the shelf. Instead of a worn leather book-jacket, it was dressed in dull red scales. Looking at it, Lucy's blood ran cold as she recognized them immediately. The scales looked identical to the ones that covered Natsu's body when he was fighting **(A/N: This is the main thing I changed. To emphasize Natsu's non-human attribute, I added scales. Like when Gajeel and Natsu fought in the manga, but it would be a thing for all half-dragons and they appear when they're getting ready to fight. They act like a sort of armor for the half-dragon)**.

Immediately, Lucy's hand flew over her mouth in horror.

"Oh my gosh. That's…."

"Half-Dragon scales." Natsu growled.

Lily looked closely at the book as well. "How can you tell they're a half-dragon's?"

"A full-blooded Dragon's scales are much bigger. These are definitely half-dragon scales." Natsu explained, eyes still locked on the book.

Lucy felt sick to her stomach. The thought that she had such a book in her store was nauseating. That book was covered in the scales of a half-dragon that was killed. He or she was skinned and their scales were used to make that book-jacket. And from the color of the scales, whoever it was, was half-Fire Dragon like Natsu was. These scales belonged to a relative of his. That thought alone almost made her lose her lunch.

Lucy finally worked up the courage to reach up and take the book off the shelf and opened it, her chocolate brown eyes skimmed the pages for a moment. This book will be a valuable resource in their search for Natsu's soulmate. It was mostly about dragons, but there was some information on half-dragons that could be beneficial.

Taking a deep breath, the Celestial mage gripped the book by the spine and tore the pages free from the bindings in one strong yank. Lucy set the stack of book pages on the shelf and held the empty book jacket for a moment before offering it to Natsu. He gazed down at the book jacket for a moment before looking up at her was a mix of horror and confusion.

"I want you to do the honors."

A sad smile tugged at Natsu's face as he gingerly took the scale jacket in his hands.

"Thank you Lucy."

A similar smile played on Lucy's face as Natsu ignited his hands and the jacket started to burn. Orange ribbons of flames greedily consumed the cover. The scales started cracking under the heat and popped like something between popcorn cornales and a party popper. All four people watched the book-jacket burn, mesmerized by the flames as they danced across the surface until it crumbled to cinders and ashes across the floor.

When all was said and done, Gajeel came around the corner of the bookcase.

"Oi Salamander! What're y'ah doin' burnin' Levy's books!"

Levy shot a glare at Gajeel. "It's okay Gajeel. Natsu didn't burn the actual pages. Besides. That was not a book-jacket I wanted in my store anyway."

The half-Iron Dragon cocked an eyebrow at the petite girl, but said nothing as Levy gently lifted the pages off the shelf and handed them to Gajeel.

"Could you keep bind these for me?" she asked.

Gajeel grumbled for a moment before responding. "Yer lucky I like you so much Shrimp…"

With the bundle of pages in hand, Gajeel returned to his post at the counter without much more then a backwards glance at the trio. Natsu, however, was still staring with a heavy silence at the charred remains of the book-jacket that was once covered in the skin of one of his relatives.

"I'll get a broom." he said meekly.

The sakura haired half-dragon disappeared behind the bookcases in the direction of the broom closet. As he disappeared, Levy looked at her watch.

"Well, it's almost lunchtime. I'll go get us some food." she offered, "Lily, you stay here."

The ebony cat nodded and leapt off the Solid Script Mage's head. With a final wave, the bluenette left the store, leaving Lucy and Lily standing among the ashes of the offending book-jacket.

Not too much time passed though before the door opened again.

"Lucy! Could you give me a hand?" she called.

"Sure thing Levy!"

The Celestial mage walked towards the door where Levy was waiting and exited the store with her and walked down the street.

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Today was a memorable day, but not in a good way. That book had been covered in a book-jacket made of one of his relative's scales. To say he was sick to his stomach was an understatement. When Lucy had handed him the book so he could burn it, it had made him...happy.

Natsu groaned and slapped his cheeks to focus himself. "Right. Broom."

The half-Fire Dragon yanked open the broom closet door, which even though the store was run by girls, was a hot mess. He had to clatter around inside from a few minutes until he found a broom and a dustpan.

When he closed the door and returned to the spot where the burned remains of the book were, but only Lily remained.

"Hey Lily. Where's Lucy and Levy?" he asked as he started to sweep up the mess.

"Levy went to get lunch, but just a moment ago she went and asked Lucy to help her with something."

"Huh? When did that happen?"

"When you were rummaging in the closet." the ebony cat explained.

The next few minutes passed in silence until the store door opened and a familiar head of blue hair walked in.

"Hey guys. Sorry I took so long. Hope you like Chinese." the Solid Script Mage said, placing the plastic bags on the nearest table.

A ping of suspicion rang through Natsu's body. "Levy. Where's Lucy?"

"Huh? What do you mean? She's here, isn't she?"

Natsu's heart dropped to his stomach. "Lily said that you came in a few minutes ago and asked her to help you with something."

Levy's eyes widened. "I didn't do that. I went straight to the take-out restaurant and came straight back."

Gajeel seemed to pick up on what was going on. "Then who did Lucy leave with?"

…

 **meanwhile**

…

Lucy was beginning to feel uneasy. She had been following Levy for a while, but instead of a restaurant she was leading her into the forest.

"Levy? Where're we going?"

"We're almost there Lucy. I'll explain when we get there."

This explanation did little to ease the Celestial mage's nerves, but she followed regardless until Levy stopped in a clearing.

"Are we here?" Lucy asked, glancing around.

"Yes." Levy said, her voice suddenly changing, becoming more edgy and sharp, "Yes we are. _Lucy Heartfillia_."

Lucy's heart dropped through her shoes as "Levy" turned into another woman with burning orange hair and fuchsia eyes. Her lips curled into a crude smile at Lucy's horrified shock. Out of instinct, Lucy started backing up, away from the imposter, but was met by something solid.

Lucy looked up into the stoic face of a dark-skinned man with hair the color of dried blood and unsettling silver eyes that bore into her soul.

"Devon." the imposter said, "You know what to do."

" **Sleep Mist**.."

Light blue mist coiled from around Devon and swirled around Lucy. The mist tickled her throat, triggering a relentless string of coughs until the world around her started to dull. Like her head

was stuffed with cotton. And it continued to fade until it all went dark and Lucy's consciousness drifted away from her.

…

 **A/N: *cackles evilly* Here's where things start getting crazy again. Hope you guess enjoyed those three chapters of fluff because for a while, it's going to be plot development with fluff inserts instead of just fluffy stuff like usual.**

 **Buckle up, because this is just my warm up. There's much more to come *evil laugh*.**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: *pops party popper* Hooray! Chapter 20! And to celebrate this wonderful milestone, I'm going to torment you all with cliffhangers and trolling because I'm an author and authors are jerks by nature.**

 **Enjoy!**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Rage was the only thing that was going through Natsu's mind. Rage towards himself and towards the people that had kidnapped Lucy. Out of anger, Natsu slammed a fist against the nearest table, almost splitting it in half.

"Dam it! Why does this keep happening!?" he cursed to himself, "Every time I let my guard down somethin' happens!"

Levy was sitting at the counter, her forehead cupped in her thin hands.

"Poor Lucy. This is all my fault…" she mumbled.

Gajeel ruffled her hair roughly, yet affectionately.

"This ain't yer fault Shrimp. We'll find Bunny Girl. You're forgettin' that there're two half-dragons in this room."

Natsu nodded. "We can still get a lock on Luce's scent if we hurry. I smelled more rain on the way this morning."

Gajeel nodded, a silent agreement sparking between the two. Natsu knew that Gajeel was only going to help because Lucy was Levy's friend and Levy was upset that Lucy was taken because she gave the kidnappers an opportunity to separate Lucy from them.

But before he knew it, Natsu and Gajeel were outside sniffing the air, the ground, anything that Lucy's scent could stick to. "Celestial and Script Magic Tomes" was on a fairly busy street, so there were a lot of other newer scents covering Lucy's.

"Oi Salamander! I got a lock on Bunny Girl's scent. It's faint, but it's her's."

Relief coupled with a burning itch swelled in Natsu's gut. Gajeel was right about the trail being faint since it was buried under so many other scents, but this was a time where Natsu was actually grateful to be a freak of nature. Thanks to his dragon-ized senses, tracking Lucy was fairly easy.

That is until the downpour started up again.

Natsu's hair was quickly plastered to his head and he was soaked clear to the bone, but that was the least of his concerns right now.

Any trace of Lucy's scent was washed away in seconds, leaving them at the edge of a forest. The forest where Natsu and Lucy met before they set off on their adventure. Natsu didn't refrain from expressing his frustration through a string of inaudible curses. Well, inaudible to anyone without dragon-grade hearing.

Gajeel hammered Natsu on the head with a hard punch.

"HEY! What the heck was that for nail-bitter!?" Natsu shouted.

"Y'ah need to calm down Salamander. Gettin' mad isn't gonna find 'er any faster."

Natsu gritted his teeth out of rage. "But the longer we stay here-"

"Y'ah don't think I don't know that?" the half-Iron Dragon grunted, "If Levy was the one taken, I'd be frantic too, but for Bunny Girl's sake, we gotta think it through. We don't even know who took 'er."

"When did you get so logical metal-head?" Natsu asked.

Gajeel flashed a crocodile smile at the half-Fire Dragon. "Guess that just comes with spendin' time with Shorty."

A lone breathy chuckle escaped Natsu's lips. As much as he hated to admit it, Gajeel was right. He had to think logically about this. Geez, how do you do that? Logic has never been his best subject. He usually left the logic to Lucy, but since she wasn't here...

The half-Fire Dragon's thoughts wandered to the forest in front of him. A strange nostalgia fluttered inside of him. This is where it all began.

"Whatch'a thinkin' about?"

"This is the place." he mumbled distantly.

Gajeel cocked a brow. "Huh?"

"This is where I promised myself I wouldn't lose anyone else." Natsu said, "Not after…"

 _Not after I lost Lisanna._

"She matters that much to y'ah?"

Natsu nodded. "Lucy's the first person that accepted me for me in a long time."

"Had there been someone else?"

A clap of thunder was the half-Iron Dragon's answer, the intensity of the rain increased. Like someone turned on a garden hose above Hajimari.

Natsu always hated the rain. Being half-Fire Dragon, rain felt uncomfortable. But with him, rain felt like it brought its own bad omen. It was raining like this the day that he met Lisanna. It had been almost four years since Igneel disappeared. He'd given up hope that people wouldn't think of him as a freak. Even if he hid his half-dragon nature, it always came out someway.

Through little things, like his gluttonous eating habit, eating fire, not getting burned while standing in the middle of a raging inferno, or his heightened senses. At the best of times, people thought he was weird and kept their distance. But the worst, they hurt him. With words, with blows, with anything they could find that could leave a mark whether it could be seen or not.

Sometimes he was able to keep his draconic habits hidden from the public eye, but there was one time where he couldn't deny what he was. With half-dragons, they all have a two special days where they either turn completely human or their draconic nature takes over. Half-dragon's do indeed turn into actual dragons on one of these special days, but not they aren't as big as their dragon parents. More like the size of a horse.

Everyone Natsu had ever met turned and fled when that special day came. Everyone but Lisanna. She was different. She didn't mind that he wasn't normal. Then again, she turned into animals too since she was a **Take-Over** mage. Lisanna actually found Natsu's half-dragon identity cool.

They met after the bullies left. They had beat on Natsu, but he didn't fight back because he didn't want to hurt them. When the bullies left, it had started raining. And that's when Lisanna appeared. At the time, she was like a ray of sunshine in his dark world. She knew everything about him being half-dragon, but she still shared her umbrella with him.

Natsu and Lisanna were uneasy acquaintances. Mostly that was his own fault. He was cautious of her. She was too nice. He was waiting with baited breath for when she turned right around and shout that he was a freak like everyone else did sooner or later. But that never happened.

And he was too late letting her in. Because not too long after they met, the Oracion Seis appeared. At first, they didn't seem too bad, to Natsu at least. They accepted him, heck, they welcomed him. But they weren't the same way to Lisanna. And when Natsu found out, he got angry and lashed out hard at Brain. As punishment…

…

…

...Brain killed Lisanna right in front of him.

When he was a kid, he wasn't strong enough to fight someone as powerful as Brain and all he could do was scream and watch helplessly as his only potential friend was killed right before his very eyes.

Lisanna's piercing scream still tore through his dreams night after night, like a broken record. After that, Natsu ran away from there. He ran and hid. Away from the Oracion Seis, away from that place where Lisanna's body was left. Bleeding, cold and lifeless. Looking back, the whole situation was ironic.

It was raining that day too.

"Oi Salamander! Are we gonna track Bunny Girl or are y'ah gonna stare at the tree all day?" Gajeel demanded.

Natsu was snapped out of his thoughts, back into the present. The half-Iron Dragon was staring at him like he had suddenly sprouted a second head, but there was something else there too. Gajeel was acting like the rain wasn't bothering him, but even Natsu could see how uncomfortable he was. Iron and water must not mix any better than fire and water. Natsu felt a ping of sympathy for Gajeel since he was in the same boat as him.

But Natsu quickly pushed the thought away to focus on what the half-Iron Dragon could have to say.

"You got a scent trail?" Natsu asked, a thin veil of hope in his voice.

"A got somethin' better."

Gajeel held up a soaking wet loop of pink fabric, the headband that Lucy was wearing today.

"Found it tied to a bush." he said tossing the headband to Natsu, "Seems like Bunny Girl's smart after all."

Natsu caught the fabric in his hand, momentarily questioning if it was real.

"Lucy must have figured that something was wrong and left a trail."

"Right to where she was." Gajeel said, "The trail'll end where she was kidnapped."

"It's still the only lead we've got." Natsu said, forging ahead.

A tree every ten feet had a strip of fabric tied around it. Each one was a piece of Lucy's clothing. A piece of her shirt, the hem of her skirt, it looked like she tore whatever she could off and looped it around a tree branch or tangled in a bush, whereever she could slip a clue to where she was going. The trail soon ended at a clearing, but unlike Gajeel had predicted, there wasn't just an empty clearing.

Impaled in the dirt was a flag with what looked like a dripping wet piece of paper tied around the pole. The half-Fire Dragon reached out to touch the soaked paper, but as soon as Natsu's fingers grasped it, it tore into soggy pieces.

"Well, so much for that…" Natsu mumbled.

Gajeel picked up the limply hanging flag that adorned the pole. It was soaking wet, but unlike the paper, didn't rip apart when Gajeel pulled on it. The flag was a crimson red, like fresh blood, and sown in the center was a vicious looking eagle, wings spread wide and the alchemical symbol for blood stamped on its chest.

"What is it?" Natsu asked, confused as to what the symbol was.

Gajeel scoffed. "Your brain really is a clump a ashes, isn't it? It's the symbol of the people who kidnapped Bunny Girl."

"I know that!" Natsu snapped, "But I don't know what it means. It's obviously a guild emblem, but I don't know a lot of 'em."

Gajeel looked closely at the symbol himself. But he apparently didn't recognize the symbol either.

"Maybe Shrimp can help."

Natsu nodded and Gajeel tore the flag from its pole, but as he did, his blood red eyes locked on to the remains of the paper tied around the pole.

"What's that?" he asked gesturing to it.

Natsu shrugged. "Hell if I know. It fell apart as soon as I touched it."

"Sound's 'bout right." Gajeel mumbled half to himself.

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

The half-Iron Dragon chuckled dully in response, pocketed the flag and started walking away, leaving a frustrated and soaked sakura haired half-dragon behind.

Gajeel called over his shoulder. "Better start movin' Salamander unless y'ah wanna catch another cold!"

The prospect of catching another cold from standing out in the rain was enough to get Natsu moving and back into town.

…

Lucy's POV:

…

The world seemed to float around Lucy like a heavy bank of fog. Everything was blurry, dull and far away. The blonde Celestial Mage vaguely wondered where she was. She didn't remember going to bed, so why was she so mind numbingly tired?

Gradually, the fog began to clear from her mind and things started to come into focus around her. The hypnotic drum of rain on earth, the sleepy crackle of a fire, and the hushed chatter of two people Lucy didn't recognize.

"Do you think we should give her another dose?" asked a rough female voice.

"No. Sleep Mist will keep blonde girl sleepy for rest of night." replied a rather unintelligent sounding male voice.

"You sure Devon?"

"Yes."

"Coulda sworn I saw her twitch.."

"People twitch in sleep."

"True…" the female voice trailed for a moment before picking up again, "Stupid rain. We could have gotten so much farther if it didn't start dumping."

The male voice, Devon grunted. "At least half-dragon can not pick up trail."

The female voice chuckled in response. "True. Heard that Bora got busted on this job because of that guy. Who would've guessed that he was Dewi's quarry? Huh, small world."

The fog completely cleared from Lucy's mind and she felt herself stiffen, but willed herself to stay relaxed. But inside, Lucy was realling. What did they mean by quarry? And who was this Dewi person. Heck, who were these people? Silently, Lucy cursed her bad luck. She'd been kidnapped again. This was starting to become a pattern that Lucy was growing tired with.

"What did Bora go by when on job again?" Devon's voice asked.

"Hm. He chose a really weird name this time. I don't get why he goes by different aliases every time he gets a job, but I think it was…" the female voice drawled thoughtfully, "I think it was….Salamander."

Lucy's heart skipped a beat. Salamander was with these guys? Then that means…

"Hard to believe that such a slut like her could be the daughter of the richest man in Fiore. I mean look at her, I don't see it at all."

"Neither does Devon." Devon agreed, "Clothes are all ripped, no way she looks like daughter of Jude Heartfillia."

"But what're we gonna do about the half-dragon? We promised to help Dewi catch him and we left a note for him to lure him to us didn't we? And with this rain, the paper is definitely toast."

"More like rice pudding."

The female voice sighed. "Either way, he'll come running. By now, he knows we have the Heartfillia girl and with how he snapped at Bora, he'll come alright. Note or no note."

Lucy's heart thundered against her chest. These people were not only targeting her, but Natsu. And given how expertly they lured her into a trap, they more than likely have one ready for Natsu too. She couldn't rely on Natsu to save her this time, she'll have to save herself.

Cautiously, she cracked an eye open, hoping to see if her kidnappers had their backs to her.

 _No, they probably don't. These people are obviously professionals. They're probably smart enough not to have their backs facing me._

Her vision was blurred with sleep at first, but once it came into focus, low-and-behold, her kidnappers did have their backs turned to her. They must have let their guards slip in the belief that Lucy was still unconscious.

As quietly as she could, Lucy started to drag herself up. Her arms were shaky from being asleep for however long, but it was quickly starting to wear off.

She'd only get one chance, so she had to make it work.

Lucy stood up and reached for her Celestial Spirit Keys, but she found none. Her brown eyes locked onto her kidnapper's things. And her key pouch and whip were among them.

To make her situation worse, her kidnappers seemed to notice she was standing up.

The woman whipped around, fuchsia eyes locking on Lucy

"Devon! You said the **Sleep Mist** will keep her out until morning!" the woman roared.

"Devon thought it would! Honest!"

"Gah! You're such a meat-head!" the woman shouted before facing Lucy, "Guess we underestimated your constitutional strength."

"What the heck do you want with Natsu?" Lucy demanded.

The woman raised an eyebrow. "You heard that? Hm."

Lucy growled. "Answer me."

"Why? You're the prisoner and you have no power over us."

The woman snapped her fingers and Devon rose to his feet, the light blue mist leaking around him. Immediately, Lucy tore yet another strip of fabric off her shirt and tied it over her nose and mouth. The woman seemed to have a similar idea, lifting a gas-mask over her face.

"So that's how your clothes got so ratty." the woman hummed thoughtfully, "You certainly have no shame, showing your skin like that."

"You aren't going to get me the same way twice! Now answer my question!"

"You know, I find it odd that you're more concerned with why we want someone else and not yourself." the woman said, "I would have thought that you would be demanding what we want with you."

Lucy's fists clenched, "I already know."

"Oh? Enlighten me."

The blonde mage's bangs shadowed her eyes. "My father hired you people to bring me home."

The woman chuckled darkly and materialized in front of Lucy and clutched her by the shirt. "You hit the nail on the head. Who would have guessed that the richest man in Fiore would be so desperate to get his wayward daughter home that he would turn to a dark guild?"

Lucy's eyes widened. "Dark guild?"

"I am Jasper Thuning of the dark guild Blood Eagle." a malicious ember shining in her fuscia eyes, "Mr. Heartfillia requested that we bring his daughter home alive, but...he never said you had to be unharmed."

A swift and hard impact met Lucy's stomach, raising a gasp out of her. Jasper threw Lucy ruthlessly against the uneven stone walls of the cave. Lucy's make-shift gas-mask came undone and fell in front of her. **Sleep Mist** still filled the cave. Lucy hadn't even breathed in that much and she was already feeling drowsy.

The blonde mage quickly cupped a hand over her mouth and nose, trying hard not to breath in too much **Mist**. Jasper chuckled darkly and flicked her wrist. A thin spike of metal slid out from her sleeve and into her hand.

As she approached, Jasper twirled the weapon in her hand and watched Lucy with vicious intent. Lucy knew what she was doing, she was enjoying herself and Jasper wanted to see Lucy's fear. The Celestial mage was scared. She was disarmed, cornered, and at a serious disadvantage. In short, she was in trouble.

Jasper stood towering over Lucy's prone form and slashed her weapon at her arm. The edges of the metal spike were sharp and cut through Lucy's skin easily. The pain didn't hit her until seconds later as the blood started to run down her arm from the cut.

The dark mage seemed to take pleasure in causing Lucy pain and slashed her several more times in different places until her shirt was almost soaked in her blood while Devon simply watched and continued to pump **Sleep Mist** into the cave. Then Jasper seemed to notice the scar on Lucy's shoulder.

"Hm? Where did that come from? It looks like a wolf sank its fangs in your shoulder and dragged them."

A wicked smile peaked from under her gas-mask. Raising her spike high, Jasper drove them deep into one of the scars. Lucy couldn't swallow her screams of pain anymore and it tore from her throat. Jasper grinned wickedly and slowly pulled the spike out, seemingly savoring Lucy's pained expression.

Then she drove her spike into the second matching scar. Lucy screamed again, this time louder as the spike dug deeper and deeper into her flesh until it was practically scraping her bone.

"You want it to stop, girl?" Jasper asked, sadistically, "You want the pain to stop, don't you?"

Lucy didn't respond, out of both stubbornness and the inability to open her mouth without screaming, but Jasper continued regardless.

"Then beg! Beg me to stop! Grovel and beg for mercy, you pathetic wretch!"

The spike dug sideways, tearing a new line in her shoulder, painfully connecting the two twin punctures together and dragging on to the base of her neck.

Lucy's vision was blurring dangerously, from both the heavy blood loss and inhaling Sleep Mist. Fear welled inside Lucy. No, more than that was building up inside of her. It burned and chilled and it pushed until it felt like she was going to burst from the pressuse. Lucy felt her life could be in danger, and she wanted to live. Not just live through this, she wanted to live her life the way she wanted to. Not the way her father wanted her to.

Fueled by desperation, Lucy grasped the spike with her free hand and tore it out of her shoulder, raising yet another scream from the Celestial Mage.

Jasper's eyes widened in shock as Lucy shakily stood, but then Jasper smirked and with pin-point accuracy, the spike flashed silver against the light of the fire as it embedded itself into Lucy's ankle, rendering it unable to support Lucy's weight.

With the unexpected loss of half her support, Lucy toppled over and hit her head hard on the uneven stone. She could barely feel the blood running down from her head, no doubt staining her blonde hair red.

"Jasper, Devon thinks you should stop." the **Sleep Mist** mage said, "Won't be payed if blond girl's dead."

"Relax Devon. She'll be fine. Besides. I haven't even started carving our guild mark into her back!"

Jasper grasped Lucy's bad shoulder and threw her on her stomach. A hard weight dug into Lucy's lower back, pinning her to the sandy cave floor.

Warm breath tickled Lucy's ear. "Feel free to _scream_."

Sharp pain shot through her back as Jasper pludged her spike through Lucy's thin tank top and into Lucy's flesh and began to drag it painfully slowly through her skin. Lucy couldn't fight back the screams any more and a loud, earsplitting scream ripped from her throat.

Every time she drew breath to scream again, she inhaled more of the **Sleep Mist** and her consciousness kept fading and fading. The pain and the small sliver of hope that someone would hear her screams were the only things keeping her from blacking out.

But even that was beginning to not be enough. The power of the **Sleep Mist** was overpowering even the pain she was feeling and her screams were getting quieter and quieter. Until she didn't have the strength to scream at all.

"Devon! Quit pumping **Sleep Mist** in here! You're making her tired!"

"It not what Jasper want?" Devon asked dumbly.

"No you imbecile! You know I like to hear them scream!" Jasper shouted.

Immediately the **Mist** dissipated and almost as quickly, but Lucy's consciousness didn't completely return on account of the amount of blood she lost dulling her thoughts. Lucy could almost feel Jasper smiling as she winced at the discomfort of having the spike driven into her back. She was dully surprised she was still alive. With the amount of blood she'd lost, she should have died a while ago.

But Jasper was taking special care to keep her alive. The whole time, she'd been careful not to hit something vital, like her heart, a lung, or her neck. Jasper was exercising a practiced skill. Lucy wasn't her first victim from the way she was acting.

Jasper chuckled darkly. "Now we can continue!"

Lucy could feel Jasper's hand tense, ready to continue carving up Lucy's skin with the emblem of the dark guild Blood Eagle, but before she could do anything, the weight of Jasper on Lucy's back suddenly vanished. The thud of a body on the far wall would have made Lucy wince if she was strong enough to move.  
"That isn't any way to treat a lady." a vaguely familiar voice spat, venom dripping from the words.

Lucy tried to place a name to the voice, but her mind was too clouded with relief, pain, and blood loss to do anything but drift into the void of unconsciousness.

...

A/N: O-O...That was probably the most gruesome scene I've ever written. I'm not going to do that to Lucy again, promise. I'm not THAT mean. No promises for Natsu though. But I will try to ease up on the dark themes because I realize that my writing has been...gritty to say the least.

If you all are wondering where the whole "special half-dragon days" came from, I got inspiration from Inuyasha (awesome anime by the way) and thought that half-dragons should have something like what half-demons in Inuyasha have.

For those of you who haven't seen Inuyasha and have no idea what the heck I'm talking about, I'll explain:

In Inuyasha, half-demons like the main character for whom the anime is named, have a time where they lose their demonic abilities and become completely human (for Inuyasha, it's the night of the new moon).

They don't have a day where they go full on demon like I'm doing with half-dragons, but I think it would be cool to explore the other side of the spectrum with a similar format.

This is going to come into play later, but right now I'm trying to emphasize the point that in this story, Natsu is NOT human.

Well, he isn't human in canon, but you get the gist.

But on a brighter note, try to guess in the reviews on who Lucy's savior is. I'd like to see if anyone can guess right :)

See y'ah all next chapter!


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: Hooray! 21! My favorite number!**

 **First off, sorry last chapter was so gruesome. Weird how my story took a total 180 with its atmosphere in the course of three chapters. I honestly didn't expect it to get so gorey. Jasper was originally meant to be a snarky, sly OC, so really I'm not sure how she developed into a sadistic psychopath with a love of causing people pain and suffering.**

 **I'm sure you all are curious about who it was that saved Lucy, but…**

 **I'm going to be a jerk and am not going to reveal who it was until the next chapter.**

 **Sorry.**

 **Happy Halloween everyone!**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Natsu's POV:

...

When Natsu and Gajeel let Levy look at the flag, they didn't get any good news. They did get a name to go with the symbol, but it's a name that behind it has a reputation of being almost impossible to track.

The emblem on the flag left by the people who kidnapped Lucy was of the dark guild Blood Eagle. Blood Eagle was headed by a man named Jupus Thuning and specialized in "retrievals". In other words, they were professional kidnappers. Anyone that anyone wanted captured called up Blood Eagle and the people taken by Blood Eagle are never found.

Alive that is.

According to Levy's records, that Salamander guy who tried to kidnap Lucy the first time was a high ranking member of Blood Eagle. His actual name was "Bora", but he went by a different name every time he took a job.

But one thing bothered Natsu.

Who hired Blood Eagle to kidnap Lucy?

Since Levy revealed who it was that was behind Lucy's kidnapping, Natsu had been pacing around the store while the rain poured outside. In his hand was Lucy's headband. It had been washed clean of her scent, but for some strange reason Natsu felt desperate to hang onto it. Like if he kept the headband in his hand that it would keep Lucy alive somehow.

A heavy hand clasped onto Natsu's shoulder, stopping him mid-pace. The pinkette's head snapped up to face the blood red eyes of Gajeel Redfox.

"What do you want iron breath?" Natsu asked, dully.

"Quit pacin' Natsu. Keep that up and you'll wear a ditch in Levy's floor."

Natsu twitched. "You said my name. You didn't call me 'Salamander'."

"Yeah, well now that I know the meaning y'ah see behind that name, I decided ta stop callin' y'ah that." Gajeel said, flashing his crocodile smile at Natsu, **(A/N: Side note. Was there** _ **ever**_ **a time where Gajeel called Natsu by his actual name and not "Salamander"? Because I don't think there was.)** "What's got y'ah so antsy anyway?"

"Lucy's in serious trouble and here we are sittin' here waiting out a storm." Natsu growled, "Why won't I be antsy?"

"I have to agree with Gajeel." Lily said, hopping on the tabletop, "Pacing around the store isn't going to bring Ms. Lucy back any faster. I can understand your concern, but we have to approach this with extreme caution."

"We're all worried about Lu-chan, Natsu." Levy chipped in, "But Blood Eagle is a guild full of people who are professionals at kidnapping. If we aren't careful, they'll disappear without a trace and we'll never find her."

"But the question is, what did they want Ms. Lucy for in the first place?" Lily mused.

Gajeel turned to Natsu, "Sala-er, Natsu, where was that Bora guy headin' the first time Bunny Girl got snagged?"

Natsu crossed his arms and shrugged. "We got the guy on a train. It was stopping at a few places so it's hard to tell where exactly he was takin' her."

"Natsu, what was the train's final destination?" Levy asked, pulling out a map and spreading it on the table.

Natsu tapped his chin in thought. That was a while ago and the name didn't really stick in his head.

"We don't have all day Natsu." Gajeel muttered sourly.

"I'm thinking! It's not a name I remember well!"

"Y'ah think you'd remember the name of the town your girlfriend was bein' hauled off to against 'er will!" the half-Iron Dragon said, getting up in Natsu's face.

"I was more concerned with turning that Bora guy into a lump a charcoal! So sorry I don't remember the name of the town!"

Tension continued to simmer between the two half-dragons, each one gearing up for a fight. That is until...

" **Solid Script: Rain**!"

...a letteral rain cloud poofed into existence above them and ice cold water dumped on their heads. Natsu quickly jumped back, away from Gajeel in an attempt to avoid the rain dump. To no anvil unfortunately. The water dumped on both of them, plastering their gravity defying hair flat to their heads.

Neither one of them was exceptionally happy with being wet again. Especially Gajeel.

"What'd y'ah do that for Shrimp!?" he demanded.

Lily offered an answer with a disapproving headshake. "Honestly Gajeel. You and Natsu need to stop picking fights with one another."

"You guys got way out of line." Levy said firmly, "I'm not going to tolerate you two tearing up my store."

Natsu and Gajeel grunted under their breath and shook themselves like dogs, sending water droplets in every direction. Levy threw her hands up in front of her face to protect herself from the spray.

"Hey! What are you two? Dogs? Don't shake yourselves off like that!" Levy protested.

"Technically, we are animals." Gajeel said, running a hand through his hair.

"Our dad's are dragons after all." Natsu agreed, wringing out his scarf, which also had gotten soaked.

"True, but your dads are dragons not dogs." Lily said.

"Butt out Lily!" Gajeel shouted.

The half-Iron Dragon soon eventually got into a shouting match with the ebony cat, leaving Levy and Natsu to watch. Levy sighed and looked looked at Natsu with an expression that clearly read: "can you believe that this man in my boyfriend?".

Natsu simply shrugged, but then resumed trying to figure out what the name of the city was. Until a bit of potentially useful information came to mind.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, "I remember something!"

Gajeel paused his argument with Lily and looked up at the half-Fire Dragon.

"What is it?"

"The name starts with a 'K'!"

Gajeel face-palmed, Lily sighed, and Levy sweat-dropped, all three staring at Natsu with the same expression. Natsu didn't really understand why they were like this. A letter is better than nothing, right?

"Natsu. There are hundreds of cities with names that start with 'K'." Levy said.

"But Erza said that it was mainly just housing for tourists and servants." Natsu protested, adding on to what he said earlier.

The petite bluenette stared at Natsu in surprise.

"That actually narrows it down significantly." she said, rushing back to her map and running a finger over it as if tracing something, "Ah ha!"

"What'd y'ah find Shrimp?" Gajeel asked, walking up behind Levy so he could see the map over her head.

"Konzern."

Natsu perked up at the sound of the name, the memories of what events transpired before the train could reach that city making Natsu's blood run ice cold.

"That's it. That's the name of the last stop on the train Salamander was taking."

"Konzern, huh?" Gajeel muttered, "Now what would a slime ball like Bora be doin' headin' for the Heartfillia estate?"

"Unless, his client was there." Levy suggested, "Blood Eagle was usually hired by people who wanted to get someone back and the heiress to the Heartfillia fortune disappeared a year ago without a trace."

"A year ago? Ain't that around the time y'ah told me y'ah met Bunny Girl?" Gajeel asked.

"Yeah it was...Oh my gods." Levy muttered.

"What?" Natsu asked.

"Lucy...she's got to be the missing heiress." Levy said, shock written on her face, "I-It makes sense. I mean, wh-why else would Blood Eagle be hired to kidnap her?"

Natsu stared at Levy for a moment, processing the words the Solid Script mage just said. The more he thought about it, the less sense it made. Lucy, a noble's daughter? Natsu couldn't see that at all. She acted nothing like a noble. She was loud, clumsy, showy, and...and….well….kind. Lucy acted with kindness and understanding towards everyone that they'd met together. Nothing like what Natsu had heard Jude Heartfillia acted like.

Even a hermit like Natsu knew of the Heartfillia's reputation. Jude Heartfillia was probably one of the most cold-hearted businessmen in all of Fiore, meaning he was not well known for his kindness and compassion.

"Waita minute. If Bunny Girl is the missing heiress, wasn't she gone fora year?" Gajeel asked, crossing his arms, "Why would Mr. Heartfillia want 'er back now?"

Natsu clenched his fist against the table he was leaning on. "I don't know, and I don't care. But if the man that hired Blood Eagle to kidnap Lucy was her father, he's gone way over the line."

Levy nodded sharply in agreement, determination and disapproval written clearly on her pixie-like features.

"If Lucy wanted to go back there, then she would have said something about being a Heartfillia." Levy stated, "And Lucy didn't say or make any indication that she was really Lucy Heartfillia the whole time I knew her. Heck, she didn't even tell me her last name. It was always just 'Lucy'."

The familiar sensation of heat shooting through his body greeted Natsu as his anger towards this man he'd never met grew. His dragon scales were rippling under his skin as the urge to nail that jerk in the jaw with a **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist** grew.

Natsu growled in frustration and stormed towards the door, "I'm gonna give that guy a pieca my mind. He's forcin' Lucy into something she doesn't want and there's no way I'm lettin' that happen."

"How do y'ah even know this isn't what Bunny Girl wants?" Gajeel asked.

Natsu stopped dead in his tracks.

"Gajeel!" Levy hissed, slapping the tall man on the chest.

Natsu scowled at the floor. "After I beat up Bora, Lucy was crying. She said she was scared that no one was comin' to save her. If that isn't a sign that she didn't wanna go home, I don't know what is."

Natsu could feel Gajeel's eyes burning holes in him for what felt like an eternity until the sound of heavy boots thudding across the wood vibrated through the floorboards until it passed. Natsu could only stare in confusion until Gajeel pushed him aside and opened the door, letting in a blast of cold, wet air.

"Well? What're we waitin' for? Let's go pay Bunny Girl's old man a visit."

Despite both Natsu and Gajeel being closer to the door, Levy was the first out, umbrella in hand and Lily on her shoulder. The sight of Gajeel freaking out was a sight that Natsu couldn't help by snicker at.

"L-Levy! What the heck do y'ah think you're doin'?"

"Lucy's my best friend and if Jude Heartfillia is responsible for her kidnapping, then I'm going to give him a word or two myself."

"Shrimp, this ain't safe." Gajeel assured, a surprising gentleness in his voice, "There's a dark guild involved and they're experts at kidnappin' people. I don't want y'ah gettin' involved in that."

"Too late Gajeel." Levy said, firmly, "I got involved when they kidnapped Lucy. I'm coming whether you like it or not."

Gajeel grunted. "Lily, help me out here. Tell 'er it's too dangerous for someone as small as her."

The ebony cat crossed his furry arms, his eyes glinting with apology directed towards the half-Iron Dragon.

"I'm sure that Ms. Levy can handle herself Gajeel. You need to have more faith in your mate."

"Girlfriend." Levy corrected.

The half-Iron Dragon grumbled crossly for a moment. "Fine, but stay close. You're so small I'd lose y'ah in an instant."

Levy scoffed, unconvinced. "We both know that's not true Gajeel."

As Levy and Gajeel were having their lover's conversation, Natsu was growing more and more impatient. Waiting around while his friend was in danger of losing her freedom was not sitting well with the half-Fire Dragon. The urge to run off to the train station, despite the fact he would fall victim to his motion sickness coupled with the pressure of the looming presence of the Ember Moon* was growing by the second.

Finally he couldn't take standing still anymore and pushed his way past Gajeel out of the bookstore and weaved by Levy, heading in the direction of the train station, ignoring the discomfort of being in the downpour once again.

"Oi! Natsu! Where the heck do y'ah think you're goin'?" the half-Iron Dragon called.

"I'm not gonna wait around for y'ah while we're losing time!"

After that, Natsu didn't really care if Gajeel and Levy were following him. He had to hurry before the Ember Moon rose tomorrow night. When he got to the train station, Natsu realized that he would need money to pay for his ticket.

Groaning in annoyance, Natsu remembered he had no money. He had spent all his remaining money on his train ticket to Hajimari and he didn't have time to get a side job.

"Looks like I'm walking." he muttered to himself.

Part of him was glad for that because he wouldn't have to deal with his motion sickness, but the other part of him was really pissed off because the Ember Moon was the next night and half-dragon or not, he wouldn't be able to make it to Konzern in time to avoid that.

Natsu was debating whether or not he could scrap up the money he needed fast enough, until a familiar metallic scent washed over him. The half-Fire Dragon side-stepped just in time to avoid getting a hammer fist on the head, courtesy of a certain half-Iron Dragon.

"Oi Natsu, what the heck do y'ah think you're doin' runnin' off without us?" Gajeel fumed.

Natsu blinked in surprise. "Huh?"

"We're coming whether you like it or not Natsu. Don't forget that Lucy's our friend too." Levy agreed.

"Besides. It doesn't look like you're going to get very far with no money to pay for a ticket." Lily agreed.

Gajeel's expression darkened threateningly.

"How exactly were you plannin' to get to Konzern then?"

Natsu sweat-dropped. "Running?"

"Yer an idiot. Y'ah know that?"

Levy stepped in between the fuming half-dragons, once again preventing a catastrophe for the second time within the span of thirty minutes.

"It's okay Gajeel. I've got enough to get tickets for all of us. There's no need to throw a fit." the petite girl assured.

Gajeel shot a final pointed glare at Natsu before backing off. Levy was true to her word and the group of three (plus one cat) boarded the train. The infernal thing hadn't even started moving and the half-Fire Dragon was already feeling sick, but Gajeel didn't look like he was feeling any better. When Natsu took his seat, he noticed that he was still clutching Lucy's headband. After all this time, he had completely forgotten he was holding it.

The loop of fabric had long since dried off in his hand, revealing the fabric's true color.

A sakura pink.

The same color as his hair. Natsu couldn't help but smile to himself. He knew that Lucy must have gotten this headband long before they had met, but it's still a strange cosmic coincidence. Almost like their meeting was fated.

That could be looking too much into it, because come on. It's a headband. Nothing mystical about it, just a simple headband.

But it was Lucy's headband, and that was enough to make it special to Natsu.

A new spark of determination ignited in his heart as he stared at the headband clutched in his hand.

He would find Lucy and he would free her from her father and he would do whatever it took to do it.

However, these determined words were lost as the half-dragon's motion sickness kicked in as the train started down the tracks.

...

 **A/N:...This chapter was obviously a filler. I needed to give Natsu this information and get him moving SOMEHOW, cause last I checked Natsu isn't psychic. But mostly a lot of GaLe and Natsu, Gajeel, and Levy now know that Lucy is the missing heiress to the Heartfillia fortune. Sorry I'm such a jerk and didn't reveal who it was that saved Lucy. I was planning on doing it this chapter, but then this whole thing with Natsu got so long that I've moved it to next chapter.**

 **I WILL do it next chapter, promise.**

 **One more thing. The Ember Moon.**

 **I know none of you know what that is because it's an astronomical event that I made up just for this story. IT IS NOT A REAL THING. In this story, the Ember Moon is essentially an extended Blood Moon, but instead of looking blood red, it looks like the moon is on fire. The moon will be present all throughout the next day, because it will be visible with its distinct flame color until the sunsets. What the significance of this event is to Natsu, I'm not going to say yet, but it will be VERY significant later on.**

 **See y'ah lovely people next chapter :)**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: I can't believe that so many people guessed on who Lucy's savior was. There were some guesses that were really out there, but upon reflection I could easily understand why that guess was made from how I phrased and described in that sentence.**

 **Now the wait is over, cause I'm finally going to reveal his identity! Don't worry, I won't troll you with Ichyia like I've done in the past.**

 **Also, Chapter 460 of the manga….Ichyia's lameness is actually useful? Hm. Who would have guessed?**

 **Now I know none of you who have not read that far into the manga don't want me rambling about chapters you haven't read, cause spoilers and all that, so I'll get on with my story instead, that is mostly spoiler free.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Darkness hung around Lucy like a dense fog. This dark fog clouded her senses and she couldn't see or hear. But she could feel. And all she was feeling was pain. Her shoulder and back were the worst, it felt like a blade was dragged through her skin…

Lucy's eyes immediately snapped open. Panic pumped through her body, as she expected to see stone or a sky from where she had been moved by Jasper and Devon, but to her surprise and relief, she was staring at a stark white ceiling. Slowly but surely, her senses started to register her surroundings. A steady beep was the sole sound in the plain room, the air smelled sterile and fresh, and Lucy could feel something draped over her body.

The Celestial Mage tensed to sit up, but quickly regretted it as a bolt of pain shot from her back. She bit back the scream to avoid drawing attention to herself, but to no anvil.

Because someone was already in the room.

"You shouldn't strain yourself. You've been through a lot and it will take time for you to recover fully." a familiar voice lightly scolded.

Unable to sit up, Lucy settled for turning her head. On the other side of the room, sitting in a chair was a familiar man with orange hair and blue tinted glasses. But for a moment, Lucy could have sworn she saw a lion where the man was sitting.

"Who are you?" she croaked, her throat suddenly feeling raw and sore.

The man looked at her in surprise, but the surprise shifted to understanding.

"I guess we only met that one time at the guild." he chuckled.

"Guild?"

Lucy thought for a moment. There were only two guilds she has ever gone to. Cait Shelter and Fairy Tail. She knew people from Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale, but this man before her didn't look like any of them.

But he was familiar. Something about his appearance, but there was something a lot deeper than that, that Lucy couldn't place a finger on.

"Did we meet at Fairy Tail?" she guessed.

The man adjusted his glasses, briefly shielding whatever emotion was in his eyes with the glare from the lights.

"I'm glad you remember. My name is Loke. I never got you're name."

"I remember you now. You were the guy that Natsu sent spiralling across the street. Now I remember you. My name's Lucy." Lucy giggled, "To be honest I'm surprised you aren't trying to flirt with me again."

Loke chuckled nervously. "Yeah, well I learned my lesson. I don't want to get sent crashing across a street again. But it's a pleasure to formally meet you Lucy."

Lucy's eyes narrowed slightly. The more she looked at Loke, the more things she noticed about him that struck her as odd. She couldn't sense much magic coming from him, infact there was barely any in him at all. His eyes were dull, almost lifeless, his smile was obviously forced and the Fairy Tail mage was notably paler.

"When I last saw Gray, he mentioned that you were disappearing a lot." Lucy said, "Why is that? Are you okay?"

Loke's forced smile faltered, just for a moment.

"Of course! Life couldn't be better."

"Then why have been disappearing?"

The orange haired mage's expression darkened.

"That isn't really your business Lucy." he mumbled lowly.

Now she knew something was up. Lucy braced herself and propped herself up on her elbows, ignoring the screaming pain in her back and shoulder until she was sitting upright. When she was upright, her back felt raw from pain, her eyes were watering and she was choking down screams.

Loke looked at her in surprise and bolted to his feet from his chair. "Lucy! I told you not to stress yourself!"

"Why not? I can take it." Lucy muttered, "I'm not a weak little princess that will cry from getting a cut."

"I'm not saying you are, but those wounds are serious! If you stress them too much, then you could rip out the stitches!" Loke protested, sounding frantic.

All protest died in Lucy's throat. Were her injuries that bad? Was she going to be stuck with the beginnings of a dark guild's emblem on her back for the rest of her life?

"The doctors said that the wound in your back will heal fully within a few weeks without a scar. That lady who was attacking you didn't dig her spike in enough to leave a scar thankfully."

A breath of relief that Lucy didn't even know she was holding was released. At least she wouldn't have an ugly giant scar on her back. That was one good thing that came out of this.

"I need to go back home." Lucy said, carefully swinging her legs over the end of the hospital bed.

However, a firm hand on her uninjured shoulder kept her down.

"No." Loke said, "You need to recover first. If you over exert yourself and tear out the stitches, then that thing on your back will leave a scar."

Lucy groaned in frustration. Her fingers drummed in impatience against her thigh, but something felt off. Her waist was empty, there were no keys or whip for her fingers to brush against accidentally. Lucy's chocolate brown orbs widened.

"Where are my keys?" she demanded, panic dripping from her voice.

Loke's eyes widened. Even in her own panic, Lucy could read two clear emotions reflected in Loke's eyes. Surprise and regret.

The orange haired Fairy Tail mage reached into his parka pocket and pulled out Lucy's key pouch and her whip and handed it to her.

Lucy quickly set aside her whip and looked over her keys, carefully examining and counting them. Thankfully, all her precious keys were there and unharmed.

"Thank goodness they're all okay." she smiled, clutching the pouch to her chest as tears of relief welled in her eyes.

"'They'?" Loke echoed.

Lucy nodded wordlessly.

"You...see Celestial Spirits as people?"

The blonde's expression sobered. "Of course I do. Celestial Spirits feel the same things that humans do. They're hardly things to me. They're my precious friends."

Lucy watched Loke's expression change from shock to relief.

"That's good. I'm glad you think like that."

Loke's hand, which still rested on Lucy's shoulder tingled for a moment. A small, almost silent gasp rose from the Celestial Mage. This energy that was coming from Loke's hand felt similar...no...exactly the same as her Celestial Spirit's.

"That can't be…." she murmured.

Loke met her gaze. "What?"

"Loke. Be honest with me." she said firmly, "Are you a Celestial Spirit?"

The Fairy Tail Mage's eyes dilated in shock, Lucy watched, her expression firm. She was sure that what she felt was the energy of a Celestial Spirit. It was very very faint, but there was no mistake.

But to her surprise, Loke pulled her into a light, but firm hug.

"L-Loke…"

"Lucy...I know this is sudden, but...I don't have long left to live."

Another gasp erected from Lucy's mouth. Was Loke dying? It would make sense why he looked so ill.

But to her surprise and annoyance, Loke pulled away and started laughing.

"You fell for it! It's a little trick I u-"

The Fairy Tail mage didn't get the luxury of finish his sentence. A loud smack echoed through the still room in addition to the agitated beeps of the heart monitor. Loke's glasses fell from his face and clattered to the tile floor as his head snapped sideways, an angry red handprint burning on his cheek.

"That….is a horrible thing to lie about Loke!" Lucy shouted, angry tears streaming down her cheeks, "Joking about death….that's something that never should be done!"

"Luc-"

"Don't!" she shouted, cutting him off, "I don't want to hear anymore from you! I want to call my friends and just have this whole thing done and over with."

Loke dropped his hand from his shoulder, picked up his glasses and walked to the door.

"I'll ask a nurse to get a communication lacrama set up." he said, shame and sadness in his voice.

Lucy's thoughts wandered back to what Loke said, and she frowned in disgust. Lucy held her disapproving expression and refused to even look at the mage until he had left the room. The Celestial Mage looked down at herself. Jasper had done a number on her. She was practically covered head to toe in bandages. Her ankle looked pretty bad too. She doubted she'd be running on that leg any time soon.

Death was and is a sensitive subject for the Celestial Mage. She lost her mother at a young age to a disease. Her mother had been the life of the Heartfillia family. Everything was so much happier then. When Lucy's mother died, her father closed her out of his life and buried himself under his work. He avoided Lucy at all costs. He snapped at her, ordered her around, and over all treated her like she was a burden in his life he couldn't wait to be rid of.

Last year, she finally reached her limit and ran away from Konzern to Hajimari and didn't look back. Meeting Levy was one of the happiest moments of her life. She loved books and reading just as much, if not more than Lucy and they immediately clicked. Not too long after, Levy hired her as the co-owner of her bookstore: "Script & Tomes", which was later renamed: "Celestial & Script Magic Tomes".

Levy didn't treat Lucy like a burden or a nuisance or a snotty rich girl. The last one is mostly because the petite girl didn't even know she was from a rich family. Being normal….it felt good. It felt like a lead weight had been lifted from her shoulders and she could finally fly whereever she wanted to go. Her father didn't control her anymore.

Than Natsu came crashing into her life and it was like someone threw a stone at a mirror. Her world shattered, but behind it was something much more dangerous yet at the same time much more wonderful.

The last thing that Lucy would ever want to do is give that up. Her new friends and these adventures, even if they're dangerous, are things she cherishes with every shred of her being. And there was no way that she'd ever give that up.

But as much as she missed Natsu, Levy, Lily, and heck even Gajeel, she felt that she was needed here. As low as it was for him to laugh after making a joke about not having much time left, Lucy had a sneaking suspicion that there was a grain of truth in Loke's words.

She knew she wasn't mistaken when she felt the Celestial magic coming from Loke. Lucy looked down at her keys and thumbed through them until she found the one she was looking for.

" **Open! Gate of the Southern Cross: Crux**!"

The end of her silver key glowed and in a puff of pink smoke, the Spirit of the Southern Cross appeared.

"Grandpa Crux, I need your help with something."

…

 **that night**

…

Lucy had gotten her hands on a communication lacrama, but unfortunately she wasn't able to reach Levy at the store or at the apartment. It was like her friend had dropped off the face of the earth. Lucy knew that trying to contact Gajeel or Natsu was pointless because she doubted that either of them had a communication lacrama handy.

But she was vaguely glad that she couldn't. Because Lucy had to help Loke and fast. She had relayed all she knew about the Fairy Tail mage to Grandpa Crux and he found some interesting things. Loke actually was in contact with Karen of Blue Pegasus. The Celestial Spirit Mage that the Oracion Seis's, Angel had killed in cold blood.

Lucy subconsciously touched Aries's key. The Ram spirit had visited Lucy after Crux had told all he could and confirmed her suspicions.

The blonde mage knew that she shouldn't be outside, hobbling through the streets on a pair of crutches towards the direction of Karen's grave site, but she couldn't stop now even if it hurt. Loke didn't have any time left. If Lucy didn't do something tonight….Loke would die.

Water roared as it tumbled over the edge of a waterfall. A small cliff extended over it, but it didn't make the distance of the fall any less dizzing. At the edge of the cliff was a gravestone with the emblem of Blue Pegasus and the name 'Karen Lilica' carved in it.

And just as Lucy predicted, Loke was standing at the foot of the grave.

"Loke!" she shouted.

The Fairy Tail mage's head snapped in her direction, eyes wide with surprise and horror.

"Lucy!? What are you doing here!? You should be back at the hospital resting."

Lucy stopped in front of him her expression firm. "No."

"Lucy…"

"Loke, I know." Lucy said, "I know who you really are."

Loke's eyes widened. "You…"

"Celestial Spirit Loke, or should I say, Leo the Lion."

…

 **A/N: And surprise! Loke was the one who saved Lucy. Most of you got this right, but to be honest I wasn't trying to be terribly cryptic. Those of you who didn't guess it was Loke, that's okay and I totally understand why you guessed what you did.**

 **I know all of you are expecting me to go along with the Loke Arc in the manga, and it is for a bit, but I've got plans to give this my own signature.**

 **See y'ah lovely people next chapter!**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Alright, I'm going to keep the Loke Arc short and sweet, so buckle up for a long chapter. And I'm going to warn you all right here and now, there's a cliffhanger and you all are going to hate me after this chapter (if you don't already).**

 **Sorry if some of the dialogue is directly from the manga or if the characterization is horrible. Some of these characters are hard for me to get right.**

 **Sorry if this chapter sucks.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

"Celestial Spirit Loke, or should I say, Leo the Lion."

Those ten words hung in the air like the ring of a bronze bell. The effect of the words the Celestial Mage uttered took many seconds to settle in. Lucy half expected Loke to laugh and tell her she's being ridiculous, but to her surprise a breathy chuckle escaped his lips.

"You really are amazing Lucy." he said, "Can't believe you figured it out so quickly."

"I suspected who you were, but Aries is the one who confirmed it." Lucy said, her eyes softening.

"How is she? Aries?"

"Recovering from trauma. She had a bad keyholder these past three years, but I can promise you she's in good hands now."

Loke sighed, relief written plainly on his face. "That's good. At least Aries can be happy."

"There's one thing I don't get Loke." Lucy said, "Why are you here? When Karen was killed, your contract with her should have been broken and you should have returned to the Celestial Spirit World."

Sadness shadowed the weakened lion spirit's face.

"I would have, if I hadn't committed the greatest sin a Celestial Spirit can commit."

Loke paused, as if gathering the courage to speak the words that caused him pain.

"I broke the sacred bond between keyholder and spirit, Lucy. I killed my keyholder." Loke admitted, "I killed Karen."

If Lucy hadn't known the circumstances of Karen's death before hand, she would have been shocked to silence. But Lucy knew the truth.

"That isn't true Loke. You didn't kill Karen, Angel did. She admitted it to me herself."

"But I was the cause. Karen was being cruel to Aries, and in protest, I took her place and kept my gate open in place of Aries's, which Karen opened." Loke explained, "I demanded that she release Aries and I from our contracts, but she refused. And I countered by staying in the human realm."

Lucy cringed. "That must have been horrible. Celestial Spirits can't stay in the human realm for long because it saps their life force. And you've been here for three years. I'm surprised you made it past one."

Loke chuckled. "Yeah. It was hell those first few months. Karen kept coming to me, begging and demanding I go back to the Celestial Spirit World because she couldn't open two gates at once, and with me taking up her only gate, she couldn't work. Eventually she went on a job and tried to open a second gate, but she failed and it cost her her life. In the end, it wasn't Angel that killed Karen, it was me."

Loke looked over his shoulder at the gravestone.

"I was forbade from ever returning to the Celestial Spirit World, for breaking our most sacred rule. It's been three years since Karen died."

Suddenly, Loke's form started to become see-through, like he was fading away.

"Now I've run out of strength."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Loke's knees buckled and he fell over. Lucy abandoned her crutches and lunged forward, catching the falling spirit before he hit the ground. It pulled hard on her wounds and her ankle felt like Jasper had driven her spike into it again, but she ignored it. She was too focused on the dying spirit in her arms to care or notice the pain.

"It's fitting, really. I'm going to disappear in front of Karen's grave."

Tears sprung into Lucy's eyes. "No! No it's not fitting! You did nothing wrong. You were protecting Aries! There is _nothing_ wrong with that!"

"Even if I was, I still indirectly caused the death of my keyholder. Now I'm being punished."

"That isn't fair!"

A weak smile ghosted on Loke's face. "It's okay Lucy. As long as Aries is in your care, I have no regrets."

"No it isn't!" Lucy shouted, she grasped Loke's shoulders and focused her magic, "I won't let you die! I'm going to save you and send you back to the Celestial Spirit World! **Open! Gate of the Lion: Leo**!"

Lucy's magic surged, she could feel it touching his gate, but it wouldn't open. But it wasn't like Lucy was going to give up after the first try.

" **Open! Gate of the Lion: Leo! Take Loke back to the Celestial Spirit World**!"

"It isn't going to work Lucy." Loke said grimly, his form much fainter than before and getting fainter, "You can't force open a gate. Now stop before you kill yourself!"

"No! I won't stop! I won't just sit back and let you die! What's the point of having magic if I can't use it to save my friends!? **Open! Gate of the Lion! Please open!** "

Lucy felt her magic come short again, this time she was starting to feel the drain. She couldn't keep this up forever, but she was going to try until she couldn't anymore. Even if it killed her, she was going to save Loke. Not just for her sake, but for Aries's sake.

"Lucy please stop! You can't use your magic all at once like that! I can't have another person die because of me!" Loke pleaded.

"And I can't have someone die when I can do something about it!" Lucy said, tears flowing down her face, "If you disappear, it will just cause more sadness! What about Aries and all the other spirits? What about Fairy Tail? They'll all miss you Loke! I'll miss you! Even if I didn't know you for long, I still care!"

Lucy felt her body start to tingle and fade in and out. Loke grasped her arm and tried to pull her grasp off him.

"You're starting to merge with the spirit energy! Keep this up and you'll disappear with me!"

Lucy tightened her grip. "I don't care! I said I was going to save you and I will!"

"Lucy! it doesn't matter how many times you try to force open my gate! You can't change the rule Lucy. Please don't add to my sin!"

Lucy looked the fading spirit in the eye. "What sin? It's not a sin to protect your friends! If there's a rule like that in the Celestial Spirit World, I'll change it!"

Lucy reached out with her magic one more time and latched on to Loke's gate.

" **Open! Gate of the Li-**!"

The words didn't even finish leaving her mouth when a great pillar of light rained down from the sky and struck the waterfall, washing the area in a harsh golden light. Lucy's connection to Loke snapped and she separated from the spirit energy.

When the dust cleared, a massive form towered over Loke and Lucy. He was 50 feet tall, intimidating (even if he had the most ridiculous mustache Lucy had ever seen) and radiated Celestial power. He could only be one person.

Loke identified the spirit in an instant. "T-The Celestial Spirit King!?"

Lucy looked up at the massive spirit in shock. "That's the Celestial Spirit King? The most powerful Celestial Spirit of all?!"

The Spirit King looked down at the pair. "Old friend," the large spirit rumbled, "we who pledge oaths to humans, we who bear keys, are forbidden from killing. Though not directly, you are responsible for your keyholder's death and are forbidden from returning to the Celestial Spirit World."

Though her body was weak from the magic she had to exert, Lucy stood at the edge of the cliff, balancing on her uninjured ankle against the towering spirit, her rage and disapproval scrawled plainly on her features.

"Wait just a moment! Don't you think you're being unreasonable!?" Lucy protested.

"Just give it up already Lucy!" Loke exclaimed behind her.

"Old friend. That's the one rule I cannot change." the King said.

Lucy's rage finally reached it's breaking point.

"How can you be so inconsiderate!? He's been suffering for three years! It was all for Aries's sake so it couldn't be helped!"

The Celestial Spirit King's eyes fell on Lucy and narrowed slightly.

"If you feel so strongly that Leo is innocent, than you must prove to me your word is true."

Loke looked at Lucy, his eyes pleading for her to back down.

"I'll do whatever it takes to prove Loke's innocence!" she declared.

"In that case…"

A sudden pain shot through her head like cannon fire. It hit hard and fast and Lucy was positive that her skull was going to crack wide open. The sensation was unbearably uncomfortable. It felt like someone was poking around inside her head, sifting through her memories and her innermost thoughts.

Her first instinct was to fight against this invasive force, but she had a nagging suspicion that it was the Celestial Spirit King who was proding in her mind. He was testing to see how truthful her words are by shifting through her memories until he found the ones that proved her point.

She didn't understand why he had to sift through her head to check her statement, but she did understand that fighting against him would prove that she's lying even if she wasn't.

It took some effort, but Lucy eventually got herself to relax and let the Celestial Spirit King coast through her memories and as time passed, she started seeing what he was seeing. He was looking through her memories of when she lived in Konzern. The recollection of these memories made Lucy visibly cringe.

All the times her father yelled at her for any reason, all the loneliness that plagued her heart, even the quietly nursed bitterness that she hadn't even realized she was holding on to, were clearly displayed before her with shocking clarity.

Every moment speed past her vision like a movie on fast forward.

And even though it hurt both physically and mentally, she didn't close her mind off.

Finally those painful memories faded back into the darkest corners of her mind and her better ones came into focus.

These memories were much more recent. In fact, these were from the year before.

Lucy smiled faintly as the memories flashed across her eyes.

That sure was an eventful year. She ran away from home, made her first real friend, got her first job, her first apartment and her first taste of freedom. That year was one of the best of her life.

Those memories flowed by and were replaced by memories that were even more recent.

The day she was first attacked by Salamander and...when she met Natsu. She relived the moment where they made their deal, and when their adventure started. All the pain and happiness that had made itself present in Lucy's life over the last month rolled into one second that stretched for hours.

At last, the Celestial Spirit King seemed satisfied and retracted his presence from Lucy's mind. The streaming movie of memories halted and the pressure in Lucy's skull released.

She didn't realize how tired she had become in those few moments until she almost fell off the cliff. Luckily for her, Loke caught her before she could tumble off the cliff.

"Lucy! Are you okay!? What were you thinking? If you weren't careful, the Celestial Spirit King could have destroyed your mind!" he said, panic clearly voiced, "You're lucky that only your magic suffered a drain!"

"Old friend." the Spirit King said above them, "If you would go this far for my old friend, maybe the "rule" is the one at fault."

Lucy smiled in relief as the Celestial Spirit King started to disappear.

"You committed a sin for your comrade Aries's sake, Leo. I'll try and save that Leo, Old Friend." he said, "For the sake of that radiant bond, I'll consider this case an "exception". Leo, I'll allow you to return to the Spirit World."

Lucy winked, a wide smile on her face. "You've got a benevolent side after all, Mustache-Man."

The Celestial Spirit King flashed a grin of his own as he continued to fade.

"You were falsely accused. Thank the guidance of the stars and your friend's truthfulness."

Lucy glanced up at Loke, instead of a relieved smile, tears were leaking out of his eyes that Lucy couldn't tell if they were tears of happiness or something else.

"Please wait...I-"

"Even after this, if you still feel compelled to atone for your sin, then I command you to become a pillar for your friend and live on. Those are the types of friends who have the most significance, there is much nobility in willing to lay it all on the line to protect someone."

Lucy grinned. "What'd I tell you!?"

"One more thing old friend." the Celestial Spirit King said, "The power of the stars that lays in you must soon be awakened, or this world shall burn."

The wind swirled and with that the Celestial Spirit King was gone. A thankful smile glowed on Loke's face as he disappeared back into the Celestial Spirit World. As he disappeared, a gold key appeared in Lucy's hand.

"Thank you Lucy. I look forward to working with you and being your backbone."

"Likewise. Get better soon Loke."

"You too Lucy."

With those final words, Loke disappeared and Lucy felt his gate shut behind him. A sense of relief washed over the Celestial Mage as the Celestial Spirit King and Loke disappeared back to the Spirit World and Loke's key appeared in her hand. She was dead tired, and magically and emotionally drained, but she was more than satisfied.

Loke was going to be fine.

Some time in the Celestial Spirit World and he'll be back to his former glory. He wasn't going to disappear. Of course, he'd probably not get to visit Fairy Tail very often anymore since he and Lucy were contracted now. She was going to have to go to Magnolia and break the news to them, but after she's healed enough to handle moving around.

The blonde curled her fingers around the golden key and clasped it onto her keyring, right next to Aries's key. The Ram spirit's key pulsed a warm golden light for a moment as Loke's key clipped on Lucy's keyring.

A smile tugged at Lucy's face. She was no psychic, but she was sure that Aries was saying "thank you".

However, the sudden break of a twig not too far off ended Lucy's celebration. At the base of the cliff, stood a woman in a black ninja outfit with bright orange hair and angry fuchsia eyes. Next to her was a tower of a man with blood red hair.

It was Jasper and Devon.

Lucy gasped and reached for her crutches, but was stopped short when a throwing knife embedded itself just mere centimeters from her fingers.

"Ah ah ah. Can't have you getting away again, can we?" Jasper taunted, knives in her hand, "You got lucky that last time, but your knight in shining armor isn't going to come and save you this time Heartfillia."

" **Sleep Mist** now Jasper?" Devon asked.

The fuchsia eyed woman held up her hand. "No. I want to have a little more fun before we knock her out again. I still need to finish carving her up."

The sadistic smile on Jasper's face made Lucy's whole body go numb with fear. This lady meant business and Lucy was magically tapped out, so there was no way she could summon a summon a spirit to take care of them.

The blonde mage's hand fell on her extendable whip that Virgo gave her. She may not have any magic left, but she could still fight.

Jasper stepped towards Lucy, but in that instant Lucy lashed her whip at Jasper. The blue ribbon of magic snapped across the mage's face, leaving a diagonal cut across her skin and over her left eye.

The dark mage screamed in pain, holding both hands over her injured eye as it bleed, deep red liquid seeping out between her fingers. All Lucy could do was stare. She didn't mean to cut Jasper. She didn't believe whips could cut, but apparently she was wrong.

Over the course of a few seconds, Jasper's screams of pain turned into screams of rage as her good eye opened again and locked onto Lucy; anger, hatred, and bloodlust burning clearly within it.

"I don't care if you're the daughter of the wealthiest man in the country! I will rip you apart piece by bloody piece until you slowly die you pathetic wretch!" Jasper roared.

Her hand glowed a surprisingly threatening shade of pink as it slowly changed. It grew longer, scaly and five long, curved claws curled from her fingers. Perfect for cutting people into ribbons.

"Jasper, you be the calm." Devon warned, "No pay if girl dead."

"Oh, I'm not going to kill her. I'm just going to hurt her really really badly." Jasper growled, never once taking her eye off Lucy, "Then I'm going to kill her."

"Still won't get pay."

"This ain't about pay anymore Devon. This is about getting even." Jasper then addressed Lucy, "You're a stain on the proud name of Blood Eagle, Heartfillia! No matter what we do, you just wiggle out of our grasp. It's an embarrassment to the guild! Now I will wipe away that shame."

Clumps of grass and dirt went airborn as Jasper tore off towards Lucy. As the dark mage grew closer, Lucy panicked. There was no way she could dodge in time with her injured ankle and there was nothing close enough that she could grab onto with her whip.

"Prepare to die Heartfillia!" the dark mage bellowed.

Warmth tingled at Lucy's fingertips. She knew this feeling well, she's felt it before. It was like the power of the stars was flowing into her. Lucy extended her hand at Jasper, a pale golden light twisting around her palm as unfamiliar words flowed from her vocal cords.

" ** _Survey the Heavens. Open the Heavens. All the stars, far and wide show me thy brilliance. Oh Tetrabiblos, I am the ruler of the stars. Aspect become complete. Open thy malevolent gate. Oh 88 Stars of the Heaven, SHINE!_** "

A pulsing wave of magic expanded from Lucy's hand, slamming Jasper hard in the chest and decorating the sky with a multitude of swirling colors and spheres. The dark mage tumbled through the air, screaming as the magic made harsh and continuous contact with her body until she crashed into Devon with enough force to topple the massive man over.

Pure magic swirled around Lucy, reversing the flow of the waterfall and tossing stones in every other direction as a blinding golden light washed over the area.

Jasper screamed in defiance, but quickly quieted as the spell flared dangerously. Lucy felt like her body was going to burst from how much magic was flowing through her until it suddenly stopped pouring into her and spell ended.

The light faded and the wind died down. The water splashed violently back into the pool at the bottom. No sound disturbed the silence that hung over the site except for the quiet roar of the waterfall.

Strangely, as quickly as magic filled her, every ounce of magic power leaked out of Lucy until she was almost completely drained. The magic stopped pouring into her in an instant like someone had flipped a switch inside of her when she was about to reach her limit. But that didn't stop her body from trembling.

Few words can describe what it feels like to have that much magic flowing through one person. To Lucy, it felt like she was a paper cup that someone was holding under a running faust until it was filled the brim and started to overflow. And just when the paper was about to disintegrate, the water was switched off and most of the water poured out the bottom.

Her brown eyes shot to the disheveled shapes of the two Blood Eagle members. Lucy held her breath, watching the pair and waiting for them to get back up again.

Fortunately, they didn't. Lucy relaxed a little, since she doubted that she could pull a stunt like that again. But the relief was short lived. In the distance, bushes rustled loudly. The Celestial Mage instantly tensed, tightened her grip on the whip's grip.

Two silhouettes appeared in the treeline. Lucy's heart pounded in her chest loud enough, she was sure they could hear it. What concerned her is that they could be more members of Blood Eagle for all she knew.

Out of the darkness, stepped two men that looked dynamically different from each other. In tow were two cats, that had the same intelligence shining in their eyes that Happy, Carla, and Pantherlily did. The man on the left, a man with bright blonde hair and a scar running along across his right eyebrow, noticed Lucy's presence first.

"Hey Rogue, who do you think the blonde is?" he asked jabbing a thumb at Lucy.

The other man, a man with black hair that fell over one side of his face and a scar running along the bridge of his nose and blood red eyes like a certain half-Iron Dragon Lucy was familiar with, looked at her with a calculating gaze that made her blood run cold.

"She doesn't look like a member of Blood Eagle." he said half to himself, "She doesn't have the same scent."

By then however, the blonde man wasn't listening. His attention was focused on the dog pile of dark mages.

"These must be those Blood Eagle guys the mayor mentioned." he said, "Aw man, they already got beat! I was looking forward to kicking their butts."

The blonde man's attention once again shifted from the dark mages to Lucy. Faster then she could blink, the mysterious man was in her face, looking her over.

"Did you beat them?" he asked.

Before Lucy could answer, the blonde man was pulled away from her by the black haired man and tossed back a few feet like a rag doll.

"Sting, don't be so upfront. Getting in people's faces won't get you anywhere."

The blonde man huffed and crossed his arms. "I just wanted some answers."

In response, the black haired man rolled his eyes and sighed in annoyance. "I am curious, I must admit. Were you responsible for defeating the members of Blood Eagle?"

Wordlessly, Lucy slowly nodded. She was more confused than she's been in a while. These two men came out of nowhere, saying they were looking for Jasper and Devon, which she honestly was perfectly okay with, but it still was strange.

Especially since these two acted a lot like Natsu and Gajeel in a strange way.

"Rogue, I think you broke her." one of the cats, a maroon cat in a blue denim vest, said, "You should've left the talking to Sting-kun."

"Fro thinks so too." the other cat, a green cat in a pink frog costume, agreed.

In an instant, the blonde man, Sting was once again in Lucy's face...sniffing her. The Celestial Spirit Mage wasn't sure whether to be surprised or disgusted. It wasn't everyday that a stranger randomly came up to her and started sniffing her like…

...like a half-dragon.

"Are you two...half-dragons?"

The black haired man, Rogue blinked in surprise. Lucy wasn't sure if what she said was good or bad because when someone who doesn't show emotion on a regular basis emotes, it could be either.

"How'd you know that?"

Lucy thought for a moment. How _did_ she know?

"I think the sniffing is what gave you away."

Rogue hit Sting on the head with a hard hammer-fist.

"That is why you don't run up to random people and sniff them Sting."

"Lay off Rogue! I was only sniffing her because she smelled like a half-dragon!"

Lucy blinked. She smelled like a half-dragon? How was that?

Rogue leaned in and smelled her himself. It still weirded Lucy out that they were smelling her, but there wasn't much she could do about it since she was so drained. Lucy had seen the power of a half-dragon enough times to know that even if they're weakened, their power is nothing to sneeze at.

"You're right for once Sting."

"'For once'!?"

"But it's not her scent, it's someone else's." the black haired man deducted.

Lucy looked down at herself. _It must be Natsu's scent they're catching. But how is his scent still on me?_

"Huh? Then how does she smell like a half-dragon? There aren't any half-dragons other than us." Sting declared.

The blonde half-dragon looked at Lucy. "How do you smell like a half-dragon?"

By this point, Sting was way too close for comfort, which annoyed Lucy quite profoundly.

"Maybe I'll tell you if you back off a little."

Sting looked surprised that Lucy ordered him to do something, but fortunately before he could do anything, Rogue grabbed Sting by the collar of his vest and pulled him back a few feet.

"What was that for Rogue?!"

"I want to know why she smells like a half-dragon as much as you do Sting." the black-haired man said, before turning his crimson gaze back on Lucy, "Why do you smell like a half-dragon?"

"That's probably my friend's scent you're catching. I'm not sure how it's still on me though…"

"'Your friend'?" Sting asked, his jaw dropped, "One of your friends is a half-dragon? How?"

Lucy raised an eyebrow at the blonde half-dragon. "We met, we talked, and now we adventure together so we can-"

Lucy cut herself off. Telling these two that she and Natsu were working to unlock his heart so he could get his wings would probably be a bad idea.

Unfortunately it was too late to take those words back.

"So you can what?" Rogue asked.

"So...So we can get his wings."

"WHAAAA? You mean you and this half-dragon are trying to get wings!?" Sting exclaimed, "How!? I'm the strongest half-dragon and I don't have wings!"

"Sting-kun would have the best wings! It's unfair he doesn't have any." the maroon cat said.

"How do you get wings? Tell me!" Sting demanded, gripping Lucy by her shoulders.

Lucy bit back a yell as his hand came down hard on her injured shoulder. A small ping of panic rose in her throat when she felt something pop under the bandages.

"Could you not grab my shoulders?" she asked, strained, "You're popping the stitches."

"Then tell me how to get wings!"

"We haven't got them yet!"

Sting's intensity died down a little, or so Lucy thought. In a single sudden action, Sting picked Lucy up off the ground and tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The Celestial Mage winced as she felt several stitches in her back popping.

"What the heck are you doing!? Put me down!" she demanded, pounding on his back with her fist.

"Not until you tell me everything you know about how to get wings."

"Why should I?" Lucy protested.

"'Cause you aren't going anywhere until you do." Sting said, "Hey Rogue! You can handle the dark wimps right?"

The black-haired man nodded and disappeared into the shadows with Devon and Jasper in tow for a few moments before reappearing again. This time without the dark mages, but a sizable bag of Jewels (the money they use).

"I got our reward for the emergency request. Let's go." Rogue's eyes darted to Lucy, "Are you really bringing her along Sting?"

"She knows how to get wings. Don't you want to know?"

Lucy could have sworn that for a brief second, a curious look flashed across Rogue's face that made her stomach drop. Rogue wanted to know how to get wings too. And once she told them they had to find their soul mates, they'll ask how to find them and she'll never get back to Hajimari.

In a last ditch effort to get Sting to put her down, Lucy elbowed the half-dragon in the back of the head. Hard. He yelped, but used his other hand to put pressure on the small welt that was now forming on the back of his head.

"What'd you do that for!?"

"Put me down and I won't hit you again!"

"No way! I haven't found a lead on getting wings since Weisslogia died. There's no way I'm letting it go." the half-dragon said, starting to walk off with Lucy in tow.

"This is kidnapping you know!" Lucy protested.

"Not like you can do anything about it." Rogue said.

"Why do you want them so badly?"

"Getting wings is a rite of passage for half-dragons. It's symbolic of our transition from hatchlings into adults."

"I thought you'd know that from your half-dragon friend."

Unfortunately for Lucy, she couldn't think of anything to counter what Sting had said and to make matters worse, she couldn't do anything to make the half-dragon put her down either with the extent of her injuries. And even if she did get Sting to put her down, there was no way that she could outrun them, even if her ankle wasn't in its current condition.

"Alright! We've got our pay and now it's back to Roba!" the maroon cat exclaimed excitedly.

"And Sabertooth!"

...

(A/N: *sigh* That moment when you know you've written crap, but you can't think of any way to fix it...This is what I'm living right now. Apologises, but I really want to move past this scene)

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Being on this lurching, bouncing train was Natsu's personal hell. Of course, he wasn't alone, as Gajeel was miraculously passed out across Levy's tiny lap groaning and also trying not to puke while Levy was reading a book using his chest as a table as she tried to distract herself and make the time pass by quicker.

The train ride was miserable and the only relief came when the train stopped at the stations, but the relief was unfortunately short lived. Pantherlily was sitting on the far end of Natsu's booth, watching both half-dragons groaning and trying to keep their lunch down. Natsu couldn't see the ebony cat's face, but he was sure he was smirking.

"How...mu...ch longer...BLECH!?" Gajeel asked between gags.

"Not long Gajeel. Don't worry." Levy soothed, still reading her book.

As Levy said those words, the train suddenly grinded to a halt, sending all the passengers lurching forward and making Natsu roll off his booth and land face-first on the floor.

Through his motion sickness induced haze, he could make out annoyed murmurs of the other passengers and then the door being thrown open.

The vise grip of his motion sickness released and the haze lifted as the car suddenly became silent. Natsu felt Levy and Gajeel tense next to him and he was sure that Lily was doing the same.

"We're looking for a half-dragon named Natsu Dragneel. Has any of you seen him?" asked a sickeningly sweet voice.

Almost preditorically, Natsu stalked under the booths until he could get a good look at the person who was demanding his presence. Or rather persons. Two women stood in the doorway of the booth, both appearing dynamically different, but both threw off the same menacing aura. One was dressed like a biker and had a huge mallet slung over her shoulders, the other had blue hair and eyes that almost glowed like twin neon lights. The second woman had Natsu on edge. She may look sweet and innocent, but the half-Fire Dragon had a sneaking suspicion that she was dangerous.

The woman with the mallet stepped forward and swung her mallet with a frightening ease, sending it crashing through a wall just above a person's head.

"We know that Natsu Dragneel is in here! Quit being a coward and show yourself!" she yelled.

"Yeah. Let's stop with this little game of cat and mouse before we kill all these innocent people." the neon-eyed girl said a bit too sweetly.

The overwhelming smell of fear filled the train car. And that's what sealed it for Natsu.

He exploded from his hiding spot under the booth, both fists blazing and red scales shimmering over his skin.

"You want me! Came and get me!" he shouted, " **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist**!"

He aimed his attack at the neon-eyed girl, but she skillfully leapt out of the way like gravity was a rule that didn't apply to her.

"Oh! There you are!" she said, a twisted delight making her eyes shine brighter, "Oh my, you're hair is even cuter in person!"

Natsu raised an eyebrow. "My...hair?"

An almost earsplitting yell broke Natsu out of his stupor and he ducked just in time to evade a mallet that sailed right over his head, missing him by inches.

"Dang it. Missed." the mallet girl muttered.

"Ohhhh! So close Anty!" the neon eyed girl said.

Natsu growled and ignited his fist again. "What the heck do you want?"

"Tsk. You're dense as a brick, ain't yah?" Anty tsked.

"Isn't is obvious?" the neon-eyed girl giggled, "We want you."

" **Iron Dragon Club**!"

A pillar of iron wizzed directly over Natsu's shoulder, narrowly missing his head and straight at the neon-eyed girl, who nimbly leapt over it and landed gracefully on the pillar as it crashed through the wall.

"Dang it. She's quick." the half-Iron Dragon mumbled behind Natsu.

The pinkette whipped around, eyes blazing. "What the heck were you doin' bolts-for-brains! You almost hit me!"

"I was aimin' for the blue-haired ditz, y'ah ash brain!" Gajeel shouted.

"Well you're aim is wack!"

" **Solid Script: Bullet**!"

A barrage of letters spelling out the word 'bullet' darted past Natsu and Gajeel's heads and peppered the wall behind them. A small yelp of surprise prompted the half-Fire Dragon to turn around. The neon-eyed girl was on her back-end, a spray of bullet holes at her feet.

"That wasn't nice!" she exclaimed.

" **HAMMER**!"

Gajeel and Natsu leapt into the air, narrowly avoiding the cartoonishly big hammer that was aimed at their legs. People in the car screamed as a whole wall of the train car was torn out.

"Levy! Lily!" Gajeel bellowed, "Get everyone out of here!"

The bluenette nodded, summoned a **Guard** with her magic while Lily started to herd passengers behind it and into the next car. Anty swung her hammer again at Gajeel, who blocked with an iron scaled arm. However, as soon as the hammer made contact with Gajeel's body, it glowed a vicious shade of green.

Gajeel shouted in surprise as the glow spread around his body and gradually he began to shrink until he was three inches tall. Natsu stared at the micro-mini half-dragon in shock. But quickly had to tear his attention away from mini-Gajeel when a quick, hard jab hit his right shoulder. The flames curling around his right hand immediately died out and the scales running along his whole right arm disappeared.

"What…?"

Anty swung her hammer in a wide arc straight down at Natsu. He dodged sideways, narrowly missing the magic weapon. The dark-skinned woman smirked wickedly.

"Nice one Dewi. Now we've got him."

"Hey!" mini-Gajeel shouted in a cartoonishly high voice, "I'm still here too! **Iron Dragon's Roar**!"

A tiny funnel of iron shards flew from where Gajeel was, but although his roar made contact with Anty's hip he seemed to be little more than a mild annoyance as the woman was hardly affected. With an annoyed growl, Anty swept Gajeel away with a swift kick of her foot.

"Dewi, get on with it already. I'm sick of this place." Anty growled.

Dewi grinned brightly and leapt at Natsu again. Natsu rolled under her and lashed with a **Fire Dragon's Talon** , catching Dewi off guard, but she quickly recovered and jabbed him in the base of his spine as he rolled onto his feet. In an instant, Natsu felt the magic flowing through him stop. His remaining scales dissipated, leaving him entirely exposed.

"Oi! Natsu! What're y'ah doin'!?" mini-Gajeel shouted.

"What the heck did you do?" Natsu growled.

"I blocked your magic so now you can't use any of those cute flames of your's."

Natsu balled his fists and charged. "If I can't fight you with magic, I'll just pound y'ah!"

The half-Fire Dragon threw a punch at Dewi, but the neon-eyed girl just smiled and darted under his fist and delivered several quick jabs along his arm, suddenly making it go completely limp.

"Blocking magic isn't all I can do."

No sooner did Dewi finish speaking, she zipped behind him before he could do anything and struck Natsu in the back of his neck and his whole body locked up and he crumpled to the floor.

Anty scuffed. "This is the guy that took out Bora? I was hoping for more of a challenge, this is just pathetic."

Natsu's eyes glowered with anger at the recognition of the name.

"You knew that predatory Salamander?" Natsu growled, struggling to move, "Then that means…"

Dewi flashed a sickeningly sweet smile, lifting the sleeve of her tunic high enough to reveal a bright pink the same symbol that was sown onto the flag that was left by Lucy's kidnappers.

Natsu felt his magic try to flare up as his rage grew. These people were from the same guild that kidnapped his Lucy.

"Where's Lucy! I know you people took her! Where is she!?" Natsu shouted.

"Hmm? Lucy?" Dewi asked innocently, tapping her chin.

"You mean Lucy Heartfillia? Ah yeah, she was Jasper's quarry. Lucky wretch, master always gives her the good jobs."

The half-Fire Dragon struggled against the limpness of his limbs, but to no anvil. However, Natsu was too infuriated to stop trying. These people knew who took Lucy and it frustrated him that he couldn't get any answers.

"We should get on the road before the Council gets here." Anty said.

"Alrighty Anty. Do your thing." Dewi smiled, stepping back.

The woman smirked and raised her hammer high, the green glow swirling around the head of the mallet.

"Nighty night, Dragneel."

And the hammer came down.

...

 **A/N: I hope my Loke Arc lived up to your expectations. I kind of forced this chapter out so sorry if it sucked, because story wise, the Loke Arc has next to no significance and I wanted to move past it ASAP. But that doesn't mean that I didn't want it to be decent and I had to rewrite parts of this at least three times -_-" Freaking Celestial Spirit King, Sting and Rogue, I can't characterize them at all…**

 **By the way. Since the city that the Sabertooth guild is has never been specified, I came up with a name.**

 **And Sting and Rogue have finally entered the game! I'm starting them off as semi-jerks because I can't really characterize them as anything but dorks.**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Finally updating! Sorry I took so long! I kinda feel bad about leaving you all off on a double cliffhanger like I did. Kinda P. But I've been putting a lot of effort into this chapter because really it's hard to characterize Sting and Rogue's relationship with Lucy because there is virtually none, so I'm basically making this up as I go along. Of course this is going to be majorly influenced by my personal first impressions of Sting and Rogue (which is I wanted to introduce their faces to a brick wall. Mostly Sting though).**

 **Sorry if it isn't accurate, but this is the best I can do -_-"**

 **And one more thing:**

 **NaluhasNashi : Thanks for reminding me about the Infinity Clock, you just gave me an awesome idea and I'll try not to do all the arcs and I'll try doing my own Infinity Clock Arc. No promises, but I'll try. I've got a few things planned for the future though *evil laugh***

 **Anywho,** **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Lucy wasn't sure when she had fallen asleep, but when she woke up she was sprawled out on a plush couch. Muffled, unfamiliar voices swirled around her as she started waking up. Her eyes snapped open to a lavishly decorated sitting room. Upholstered chairs and couches lined the walls, and sitting directly across from Lucy and staring at her with an unblinking gaze was Sting. The Celestial Mage tried to sit up, but was stopped by a shooting pain in her back and a heavy weight on her chest. She was laying on her back and curled up on her stomach was a green cat wearing a pink frog costume, sleeping away.

"Who exactly are you?" Sting asked suddenly.

Lucy turned her attention back to the half-dragon. "Why do you want to know?"

He shrugged. "Curious."

"About what?"

"About how a _human_ knows a half-dragon. Heck, how does another half-dragon even exist?"

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Rogue and I are the only half-dragons. There haven't been any half-dragons since Skiadrum's and Weisslogia's previous half-breed children died and we inherited their power."

"That's not true." Lucy said, "I know several half-dragons."

"'Several'? How? You're just a lowly human. Humans are weak and they judge people like Rogue and I because we're stronger."

Lucy scowled. "You may be stronger than a normal human, but don't think people will like you any better if you keep calling humans 'lowly' or 'weak'."

"We don't need people to like us. If people don't like us, we can just tear them to pieces and that's that." The half-dragon stood up and walked towards Lucy, "Now how do Rogue and I get wings?"

Lucy scoffed and started stroking the cat on her stomach.

"I doubt you'd be able to get wings." she muttered crossly.

"How do we get wings?" he demanded again.

The cat on her stomach started purring, a small smile tugged at the corners of Lucy's mouth, but she quickly focused herself on her situation. If she had to, she'd break out of here. The Celestial Mage didn't plan on telling Sting and Rogue how to get wings, not out of spite or anger, but more out of concern. The only way to get wings is if they find their soulmates and both parties have to return the same feelings. Lucy couldn't even fathom what the half-dragons would do if she told them, but she had a sinking feeling that a lot of people would get hurt. But of course, she doubted that she'd be able to hold onto the information for very long.

A door opening drew Lucy's attention from the cat in her lap. But as soon as she turned her head, she was met by a terrifying pair of angry red eyes.

"Are you stealing my Frosh from me!?" he growled.

"I-Is that the cat's name?" Lucy asked, slightly surprised, "Why is he wearing a frog costume?"

"Frosh thinks he's a frog." another voice said from the ground.

Lucy looked over the edge of the couch, careful not to wake the sleeping cat, and there was, yet another cat. It was the maroon one this time.

Rogue raised an eyebrow. "You're not surprised?"

"By what?" Lucy asked.

"Two talking cats and you aren't the least bit freaked out?"

"I've met three cats just like them, but they could fly."

Sting snickered. "Flying cats? That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

"Says the half-dragon." Rogue muttered.

"As much as I enjoy this conversation, can I go now? My friends are going to be worried about me."

 _If they aren't already._ the Celestial Mage thought to herself.

"You gotta tell us how to get wings first." Sting said firmly, "Besides, you won't be going anywhere with those injuries for a while."

"I can manage!" Lucy protested. "...Somehow."

Sting rolled his eyes and scoffed, but said nothing and walked closer to Lucy. Soon the half-dragon was standing over her and in a swift motion, he sharply swatted her injured shoulder. Lucy yelped in pain, her hand flying over the wound and jolted Frosh awake in the process.

"See? You humans are so fragile that a scratch can make you cry."

Lucy gritted her teeth. "In case you didn't notice, this isn't a scratch as you implied, this is a scar that was reopened."

"Scar, scratch, same difference. Point it, a powerful half-dragon like me could shrug off a petty wound like that in no time. But you aren't a half-dragon. You're just a weak human."

Lucy gritted her teeth. What was with this guy? He seemed to show a shred of concern for her then he did a 180 personality change and took every opportunity he could find to point out that she was a human and nothing more.

"So what?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"So what if I'm only human? You're half-human, so how does that make you better than me?"

Sting scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I'm half-dragon too. _That's_ what makes me better than you."

"When it boils down to it, you are nothing but a human." Rogue agreed, "Compared to us, humans are fragile creatures that are easily broken."

Sting bent over Lucy until she could feel his breath on her ear.

"So know your place, human." he hissed, "Now I'll ask again. How do we get wings?"

The blonde mage clenched her fist against her trembling body. She could tell that Sting was smirking, most likely believing she was trembling out of fear. That was part of the truth, but she was mostly trembling out of rage. Lucy's emotional side wanted to slap the cocky half-dragon hard enough to knock a couple teeth out and from this position, she easily could, but her logical side knew better.

As arrogant as Sting is, he was right. Lucy is weak and fragile compared to them no matter how anyone could look at it. She wasn't built for fighting like Natsu, or Gajeel, or Wendy, or Sting and Rogue. She could train her hardest for a hundred years and she wouldn't even be half as strong as them.

"Well?" Sting asked, impatience lacing his voice, "I'm waiting for an answer."

"Quit making Sting-kun wait! He's a hundred times stronger than you are, so you should be trying to stay on his good side!" the maroon cat demanded.

A small snicker slipped through Lucy's clenched teeth. Rogue raised an eyebrow and Sting straightened in surprise.

"What the heck's so funny?" the blonde half-dragon asked.

Lucy chuckled before turning her head and looked Sting right in the eye, a small smirk on her face.

"You."

"Me?" Sting asked pointing at himself, "How the heck am I _funny_? I'M THE STRONGEST HALF-DRAGON EVER TO EXIST, I'M INTIMIDATING NOT FUNNY!"

Lucy laughed a little louder, Frosh, who was still sitting on her stomach looked at her with a innocently confused expression that was so cute it just made her laugh harder until she was almost gasping for breath.

"WHAT THE HECK IS SO FUNNY!?" Sting roared.

The Celestial mage finally managed to sober herself enough to answer the demanding half-dragon.

"You're never going to get wings with an attitude like that." she snorted.

"Do you think we aren't motivated enough?" Rogue asked, clearly confused by Lucy's sudden outburst.

The Celestial Mage hauled herself up into a sitting position, her keys jangled musically against each other, reassuring Lucy that they were still there, but thankfully she wasn't missing her whip. When Lucy sat up, Frosh leapt out of her lap and skipped over to Rogue's side, elevating her of the weight in her lap. Sting looked like he wanted to throttle Lucy this moment, but strangely that didn't faze her at all.

Compared to all the other insane stuff she's seen in the last month, Sting was a laugh.

"I didn't say that." Lucy said, crossing her arms over her chest, "You really don't know anything about getting wings. Do you?"

Sting scoffed. "Weisslogia said some junk about 'unlocking the heart' but what does that have to do with getting wings?"

Lucy looked at Rogue. "And what did your dragon parent say?"

"Skiadrum said the same thing."

"The point is, we want to know how to get true _dragon_ wings. Dragons are furious creatures of destruction, unlocking the heart can't be the way to get wings of a creature like that." Sting huffed.

Lucy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, shaking her head.

"Hey! What's that for?" Sting asked.

"And I thought Natsu was dense." she mumbled.

"Huh?"

"You both were given everything you needed to know." Lucy said, matter-of-factly.

"What? What the heck does unlocking hearts have to do with wings?" Sting demanded.

Lucy sighed again. "Your magic largely depends on emotions, right? The more you feel the stronger you get, am I right?"

Sting scoffed.

"We have no need for emotions to make us stronger." Rogue said, "We have the true strength of dragons running through our veins."

"Of course you do. You're half-dragons."

"Sting and I have more than just are given blood."

"We have the power of our fallen brothers," Sting said darkly, " _and the power of our fathers_."

Lucy's eyes widened in disbelief. When she had first encountered the half-dragon of the Oracion Seis, Cobra, she had learned that the only way to transfer power from a half-dragon is to kill them and capture their magic in a lacrama. So why couldn't the same be true for full-blooded dragons?

"Y..You killed…." Lucy trailed, a pit of dread in her stomach.

"That's right." Sting said, smirking darkly.

"We killed our fathers and absorbed their power." Rogue finished.

Horror and shock spread on Lucy's face, a horrified hand flying over her mouth. Sting's smirk grew even larger.

"Still think we're funny?"

The idea of killing her own father, even though he was a heartless businessman, was something that never crossed her mind. Even if he wasn't the best fatherly figure, he was still her father and she still loved him, somehow. Lucy doubted that Weisslogia and Skiadrum were horrible parents, but even if they were, knowing that they were murdered by their own children is enough to make Lucy's stomach do nauseating acrobatics.

The Celestial mage swallowed the bile welling in her throat and scowled at the pair of half-dragons and stood up tall from her seat on the couch, putting mostly all her weight on her uninjured ankle.

"If that's how you feel towards your own parents, then there's no way either of you can ever get wings."

"What? What are you talking about human?" Sting growled.

"It isn't ' _human'_ , it's ' _Lucy'_." she said pointedly, "To get your wings you have to give and receive true feelings of love. And with hearts like yours, I doubt that'll happen."

The Celestial Mage at first tentatively walked between the shell-shocked half-dragons and towards the door, careful of how much weight she applied to her injuries. Her ankle wasn't broken, she could still walk on it, but it hurt to do so. But as she grew used to the shooting pains, she grew more confident. Her expression was stoic except for the minor flicker of pain, but inside she was feeling as surprised as the half-dragons looked at her own boldness. Natsu must be rubbing off on her. Just a year ago, she'd never dare to say something so dauntless.

Lucy grasped the doorknob and twisted it. But as she pulled the door, someone on the other side pushed. Both people let out a small yelp of surprise. Lucy's heart dropped into her stomach, the person on the other side of the door bore a striking resemblance to a certain enemy Celestial Mage.

The girl in front of her looked like Angel of the Oracion Seis.

"Yukino. What are you doing in here?" Sting demanded, recovering from his shock, "I told you that this room is off limits."

"Apologises, Sting-sama, but Master is demanding your immediate presence."

The blonde half-dragon groaned in annoyance before roughly pushing past Lucy and out the door.

"Rogue, Lector, keep an eye on our guest." he called over his shoulder.

"Master also requires Rogue-sama's and our guest's presence as well." Yukino informed.

Rogue lightly sighed behind her before coming to the door himself, but rather than pushing past Lucy, he herded her out in front of him, while being surprisingly gentle around her injured back.

However, Lucy didn't have time to be surprised by Rogue's actions, for as soon as she stepped out of the sitting room, a hundred pairs of harsh eyes turned to her.

Instinctively, Lucy felt herself stiffen, all the years of noble training immediately kicking in. The atmosphere was so harsh and heavy, it was practically suffocating. All the eyes were on her as she passed, trying her hardest not to limp. Judging from how Sting and Rogue are, showing any sign of weakness here would be a fatal mistake.

There were a lot of intimidating people here and they all threw off insane amounts of magic. And every single one of them had a battle hardened look in their eyes. At the front of the room there was a massive chair, like a throne and sitting in it was a very intimidating looking man with the Sabertooth guild emblem stamped on his forehead. Standing next to him was an equally intimidating woman with long black hair and a dangerous smirk on her face.

Lucy wasn't sure why, but the lady scared her more than the man sitting in the throne. The man's harsh gaze fell on Lucy, making a shiver crawl up her spine. He glared at her for a moment before moving to Sting.

"Sting, Rogue, why did you bring this wretch to our guild?" he demanded.

The blonde half-dragon glanced over his shoulder at Lucy for a moment before looking back at the man. Lucy could have sworn she saw something familiar flicker in his eyes, just for a moment.

Fear.

"She knows how to get wings, so I brought her." he shrugged, attempting to be casual.

"Do you even know who this girl is?" the lady asked, her voice cold and smooth like ice.

"Should we?"

The lady stepped down from the dais and stopped in front of Lucy. The lady regarded her with a harsh, calculating look. The Celestial mage felt herself tensing. She wanted to shrink back from this lady's harsh look, but she knew she shouldn't.

The lady grabbed Lucy's chin and tilted her head up and grinned wickedly. "This girl is obviously of noble descent. Tell me, what's your name?"

Lucy remained silent and the lady didn't take too well to that. She released Lucy's chin and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt instead and twisted it harshly.

"That was not a request. I know you aren't mute."

The blonde clenched her fist. "My name is Lucy."

"Lucy, what?"

The Celestial Mage fired a glare of her own at the lady.

"Just Lucy."

The lady and Lucy glared at each other for what felt like ages. Time seemed to move around them like molasses. Until a hard blow struck Lucy's injured ankle. The lady released her grip on Lucy's shirt and let her crumple to the carpeted floor with a shrill scream of pain and surprise.

"Do you have any idea who you're messing with?" the lady said darkly, looking down on the crippled Celestial Mage, "I am Minerva, a half-god."

...

Natsu's POV:

...

Saying Natsu was pissed off was the understatement of the century. He was flat out furious. At himself for being so pathetic that he got captured, and Blood Eagle who was responsible for kidnapping Lucy.

But the half-Fire Dragon wasn't sure who he was more mad at: Dewi, this Jasper character, or Anty. Natsu wasn't sure how the mallet-wielding dark mage did it, but when she hit him with that hammer, it shrunk him to four inches of height and thanks to Dewi, his magic still hadn't returned to him.

Whatever Dewi did blocked him from using his magic and it made him even more mad. He could feel his magic swirling and thrashing around inside him, but it felt like there was a block that he couldn't get passed that was preventing him from accessing it.

The dark mage in question looked like she was having the time of her life messing with Natsu's miniaturized hair. It annoyed Natsu to no end, but the more he struggled to escape Dewi's grasp, the tighter she held on.

"His hair is even cuter when he's tiny!" Dewi squealed, "It's so soft, like a little pink cotton ball!"

Anty dug a finger in her ear as the magic blocker's voice reached an impossibly high octave.

"Dewi, would y'ah stop messing around? You read the briefing. This guy's the son of the King of Fire Dragons, Igneel and he took out Bora. If y'ah let your guard down for even a second he could slip away." Anty spun on her heel to face Dewi, brown eyes blazing, "And if that happens, the client'll have our heads."

Dewi huffed and stopped messing with Natsu's hair. "Fine, but I can't help it."

Anty growled, "Just be sure to keep his magic blocked. Even if he's tiny, dragon magic is nothing to take lightly."

"Dam right!" Natsu shouted, thrashing again, "Turn me back so I can pound y'ah!"

"You really don't know what's going on, do you?" the mallet mage drawled, "Do you even know who hired us?"

"No! And I don't give a crap either! When I find those people who took Lucy, they're gonna wish that they never messed with her!"

"You must really care for this 'Lucy'." Dewi said, "Too bad you'll never see her again."

"That's what you think!" Natsu shouted.

Anty 'tched' and plucked Natsu out of Dewi's hand by his scarf and held him to eye level.

"You just don't know when to quit. Listen, you aren't getting away from us. We haven't lost a quarry yet and we ain't starting today. If you want to see your little girlfriend again, I'm afraid the only place you two'll meet again is the afterlife."

Dewi laughed. "Or rather the Underworld, since our client is the dark guild Tartarous!"

...

Levy's POV: (check it out! New POV!)

...

When Levy and Lily got back to the train car, she felt her heart drop into her stomach. There was no one there. Natsu, Gajeel and the strange people had disappeared without a trace. Levy felt tears welling in her eyes as she sank to her knees on the dust covered floor.

Lily, still in combat form, shrank down to his normal form and attempted to comfort Levy. Until a familiar, yet cartoonishly high voice piped up from the floor.

"Oi! Why're you cryin' Shrimp!"

Levy's eyes snapped open. "G-Gajeel? Where are you?"

"I'm down here!"

Levy and Lily both looked at each other with a questioning look, but started looking around the floor of the demolished cart regardless. Ironically, neither one of them was able to find the half-Iron Dragon, which was strange since he was over six feet tall and had a habit of sticking out in a crowd.

"Gajeel, I don't see you." Levy said.

Something pulled sharply on Levy's hair. "I'm right here!"

Levy looked up and hovering above her with his metallic wings was Gajeel. But he was four inches tall.

"Gajeel?" Levy asked.

"What happened to you?" Lily finished.

"That lady with the mallet from before shrunk me!"

Levy raised an eyebrow. "With a...mallet?"

"It's got some sorta shrinking magic on it. She did the same to Sa-..Natsu after that other chick blocked his magic somehow."

"Is Natsu still somewhere around here?" Lily asked.

"'Fraid not. They took 'im and disappeared before I could do anything."

Lily crossed his arms. "Who were they? Those people seemed like they knew what they were doing."

"I'm willing to bet they were from Blood Eagle." Levy said, grimly.

Gajeel grunted above her. "Got that right Shrimp."

"But what'd they want Natsu for? I get why they'd want Lucy, but why Natsu too?" Levy asked, running a frustrated hand through her hair.

"Probably has something to do with his half-dragon blood." Gajeel grunted, "'Cause other than that, there ain't anything that's worth kidnappin' Natsu for."

"Either way, we should hurry and find him and Ms. Lucy before it's too late." Lily stated.

"But there's only three of us now and I doubt that Lucy and Natsu's kidnappers are going in the same directions." Levy hummed.

Gajeel laughed from above her. "That's why we're calling in the cavalry."

Levy's eyes widened in shock and excitement. "You mean…?"

The half-Iron Dragon flashed his signature crocodile smile as Levy. "That's right Shrimp. We're going to Fairy Tail."

…

 **A/N: Was this okay? I think I might have made it worse since I left you guys off on more cliffhangers, but next chapter there'll be some more in-depth explanation about what the heck is going on.**

 **But for now I'll leave you all to speculate in the reviews and I'll see y'ah next chapter!**


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Geez. Chapter 25. How'd it get that high already? Eh. Well, as you all can tell, we're entering a new arc, and hopefully this will be the last arc heavily inspired by the manga. Sorry if I get lazy in some areas, but there's gonna be some crazy stuff going on in this arc.**

 **Hopefully a lot of feels, both good and bad.**

 **But I think that this story may be coming to close soon, cause as much as I love this story, I don't want to drag it on too long and start forcing things. I'm not sure exactly when this story is going to end though cause I've started to plan things out a little and it's already 7 pages long and that's just this arc…**

 **It's going to be a long ride.**

 **However, I might leave a few ends open for a sequel that follows the adventures of the next generation of half-dragons (hint, hint, nudge, nudge).**

 **Thank you to all the people who have been sticking with me so long and enjoy the next chapter :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Lucy wasn't sure that she had heard Minerva right. She's met plenty of half-dragons, but half-gods? How is that possible? Whatever it's a lie or not, Minerva was pulling it off. She stood over Lucy was a frightening dominance and the power she was admitting was insane.

"So who are you?" Minerva demanded.

Lucy shakily stood up, defiance shining in her eyes. "I already told you. My name is Lucy."

"But Lucy, what? You obviously hail from a noble family, I'm only curious as to which one." the half-god said innocently.

The Celestial Mage reached for her keys, but her fingers grasped empty air. Lucy's eyes widened as Minerva held up Lucy's key ring, a victorious smirk on her face.

"Golden Zodiac Keys?" she hummed, "Then you must be descended from a Celestial being of some sort. Interesting."

"What are you talking about?" The Celestial Mage demanded.

Minerva chuckled lowly. "You know absolutely nothing, do you? Celestial Gate Keys can only be used by people with Celestial descent. The people more closely related to a Celestial being you are the more power you have. And you have 9 Golden Zodiac Keys, the most powerful spirits in the Celestial Spirit World. I'll leave the rest to your imagination."

A strange blue/green energy curled around Minerva's free hand. Lucy was about to ask what she was doing, when the sphere of energy shot at her. The Celestial Mage barely dove out of the way in time. The sphere shattered the ground on impact and even though it was gone now, Lucy could still feel the energy tingling in the air around it.

"You are closely related to a powerful Celestial Being." Minerva said, readying another bolt, "I want to see just how strong you are."

Another bolt flew and Lucy rolled out of the way, landing in a crouch just in time to dodge another bolt. Minerva was throwing destructive sphere after destructive sphere. So much so, that the entire Sabertooth guild had formed a huge ring around the dueling woman to avoid getting hit by Minerva, who seemed not to care if she hit her guildmates.

"What's the matter?" the half-god cooed mockingly, "Not going to attack me? Or are you too weak to attack!"

A bolt larger and faster than the others hit Lucy dead on in the chest, the force of the blow knocking her clear off her feet. Stabbing pain tore through her body, almost raising a scream out of her. In a flash, Minerva was standing in front of Lucy, looking confident as ever. She reached down and brought Lucy off the ground and delivered a series of hard and fast blows to her body, specifically aimed at her shoulder and ankle.

A final blow to the gut flung the blonde mage across the room and slammed her into the base of the dias, leaving a shallow crater from the impact. The pain that ripped through Lucy's body was great, but she kept telling herself she had been through worse. In a way she was right. Minerva was tame compared to Jasper and the half-god's blows had nothing on the creatures that left Lucy with twin pairs puncture scars in her shoulder.

So she got up again, her hair tie had fallen out at some point in the scuffle, leaving her hair to fall past her shoulders in a matted mess of gold. Lucy was positive she looked like an absolute mess, and in front of all these people too. Under normal circumstances, she would have cared that she looked like crap, but these weren't normal circumstances.

As far as the Celestial Mage was concerned, it was just her, Minerva, and her gate keys; her friends in that room. Minerva had taken her friends from her, and Lucy would be dammed if she didn't get them back.

"Oh? You're tougher than I first thought. I thought you would keel over from that last attack." Minerva smirked, "Oh well. This just makes the festival more fun. A king must be entertained."

"Give me back my keys Minerva." Lucy demanded.

The half-god blinked at her, apparently confused by Lucy's demand if not for a moment. Then she threw her head back laughing.

"You are in no position to be making demands. If you want your precious keys back so badly, than you'll have to take them back by force."

Lucy clenched her fists. Rage bubbled inside her, but that rage quickly converted into something different and familiar. That same magic she had felt filling her when she had taken out Jasper and Devon was resurfacing again and quickly becoming manifest in a pale yellow aura the whipped around her like an angry flame.

"I won't ask you nicely again Minerva." she warned, "Hand over my keys."

The half-god scoffed, unimpressed. "Just because you can summon a magic aura doesn't mean I'll roll over and do what you want."

Silently, Lucy raised her hand towards Minerva, magic crackled in her fingertips. It almost felt like there was an actual star burning in her heart.

" _ **Survey the Heavens. Open the Heavens. All the stars, far and wide show me thy brilliance. Oh Tetrabiblos, I am the ruler of the stars. Aspect become complete. Open thy malevolent gate. Oh 88 stars of the Heaven, SHINE!**_ "

The same swirling energy and planetary spheres filled the room as an almost cannon like blast shot from Lucy's palm, directed directly at Minerva. The half-god's eyes widened noticeably. She side-stepped, dodging the devastating attack by the slimist of margans.

When the attack died down, there was a gaping hole in the Sabertooth guild's wall roughly 15 feet in diameter. The whole guild was shocked to silence, all eyes glued on Lucy, who was at the moment just trying to stay upright as her hand dropped limply to her side. The spell drained her a lot more than it did the night before, but judging from the sheer destruction that it caused last night and just now, it wasn't a spell that could be used multiple times in short spans of time.

Lucy inhaled quietly and took a shaky step forward, then another, and another until she was toe-to-toe with Minerva. The blonde mage extended her hand, and she could have been imagining it in her energy depleted haze, but she could have sworn she saw Minerva flinch. Lucy's hand stayed where it was. Halfway between them, palm upturned. The half-god looked at it in a clearly confused stupor.

Lucy cleared her throat roughly. "Keys."

Almost trance-like, Minerva placed the key ring in Lucy's upturned hand. As Minerva's fingers retracted from the keys, Lucy's fingers curled gently around her precious friends' keys. Unimaginable relief flooded into her when she felt the tingle of their power in her fingers, making a tired smile spread on her face. As she refastened the key ring to her, someone finally spoke up, breaking the shocked silence.

" **Urano Metria**." A shocked voice murmured, "That was... **Urano Metria**."

A small figure forced their way out of the crowd. The first thing that Lucy noted in her exhaustion was that this person was obviously female and had snow white hair. The person who opened the door earlier. Lucy's brow furrowed slightly as she tried to recall her name.

"How do you know such an advanced spell?" the white haired mage asked.

Lucy's head lifted, though her eyes still felt heavy. "...Huh?"

"How did you learn it? I've been trying for years but I could never generate an effect that massive."

"It just kinda happened…" Lucy murmured, her words slurring as she tried to rub the exhaustion from her eyes.

"'Just kinda happened'!?" the mage exclaimed, surprise heavily lining her voice, "How does **Urano Metria** just _happen_?"

"I don't really know." she shrugged, "What's your name?"

"My name is Yukino, 5th generation descendant of the Tennin*."

Lucy nodded shortly, "Nice to meet you Yukino. I'm Lucy."

"But what are you descended from?"

The blonde girl shrugged sleepily. "Not sure. This hadn't been introduced to me until just two minutes ago."

"You're more clueless than I first thought." Minerva scoffed behind Lucy.

Yukino's mouth moved, as if she was speaking, but Lucy didn't hear any words. She was fighting to keep her eyes open and was losing, the extent of her magic depletion finally catching up with her and pulling her into comforting darkness.

...

Natsu's POV:

...

Several hours had passed since he had been abducted, and Natsu was growing more frustrated by the minute. He had gained several more welts on his head from the strikes of Anty's hammer, keeping him reduced pocket size. Dewi still messed with his hair, Anty still shouted at her to focus on keeping Natsu's magic in check and stop messing with him.

Honestly, the half-Fire Dragon was considering biting Dewi's finger and making her release him, but she kept smashing his head in with her index finger so he couldn't get a clean shot to dig his fangs into her skin.

The lush green forest had long since disappeared, replaced by a thinning line of trees that looked almost dead. The landscape had become rocky and uneven. Dewi had almost tripped a couple of times, briefly raising Natsu's hope that she'd drop him and he could hide among the rocks.

As the hours ticked by, Natsu got gradually more anxious. The Ember Moon was that night and it was twilight. The moon hadn't even risen and he could already feel the influence of its power. Some brief times where Dewi squished his hair into his line of vision, Natsu could already see some black strands among his mess of pink hair.

Suddenly Anty stopped and started digging around in her jacket pocket. Dewi stopped as well and hummed sadly.

"That time already?" she whinned.

Anty turned around holding a small blackedout jar(A/N: A jar that's covered in black paint so you can't see inside) and unscrewed the lid.

"Yep. We'll be there by nightfall, so put 'im in the jar Dewi." Anty said extending the jar towards Dewi.

The magic blocker groaned in annoyance and reluctantly surrendered Natsu to the confines to the jar by plunging him in head-first, the lid following soon after. Seven solitary beams of light fell through the small holes in the lid of Natsu's cramped prison that allowed him to breath. The jar was in a word claustrophobic. It was a task in itself for Natsu to get himself into a fairly comfortable position which still left him with very little wiggle room, but even though it only took a few minutes, he was already winded.

 _Dang it. I'm already feeling it and the moon hasn't even risen yet!_ he groaned inwardly.

Natsu concentrated as much as he could, reaching within himself and grasping for whatever power he could find, but it all was barely out of his reach and getting farther by the minute partly thanks to Dewi's insane skill and the coming of the Ember Moon. The half-Fire Dragon clutched his fist in anger, but that anger faded upon realising he had something still clutched in his hand.

That something he immediately recognized as Lucy's headband.

He must have still had it in his hand when he tried to fight Dewi and Anty without even realizing he had it. It probably got a bit charred in the fight, but Natsu felt that it was still in one piece.

Determination sparked to life within him. Lucy still needed him and he couldn't give up. Even if the Ember Moon rose and he lost his powers as a half-dragon, he'd still fight, he'd get away from this 'Tartarous' and find Lucy. He had sworn to himself that he wouldn't loose someone precious to him ever again and Lucy was the most precious person in his life.

Fueled by a new drive, Natsu wound the headband around his wrist and repositioned himself again. The new position was uncomfortable and was similar to the position he was put in when he got shoved in the jar in the first place, but it was the best vantage point to get leverage.

Natsu only had this one plan. It was a stupid plan and there was no guarantee it would work, but it was the best he could think of.

With whatever of his waning supernatural power he could scrape up, Natsu kicked at the plastic lid. It bowed sharply under his blow and the whole jar rattled. A small yelp of surprise vibrated through the walls, followed by a voice.

"Quit kickin' in there!" Anty's voice ordered, shaking the jar sharply,"You're makin' this harder than it has ta be!"

"I ain't goin' down without a fight!" Natsu protested, kicking the lid again, "If you think I'm just going to give up just like that, then you don't know two s**** about half-dragons!"

Dewi gasped. "He used a dirty word!"

Natsu kicked again, and a large crack formed in the lid between two of the holes. From the crack, Natsu could see that the sky was starting to turn from melt from a dark red to a flaming orange.

The half-Fire Dragon cursed under his breath and kicked again. His kick did less damage than it did the time before and he was getting exhausted. His superhuman strength was waning dangerously. A tall tale sign that the Ember Moon was rising.

He was turning human.

"Well, it doesn't matter if we know anything or nothing about half-dragons. 'Cause we're here." Anty said, "Welcome to Tartarous, Dragneel."

...

Levy's POV:

...

There's not enough words in the English language to describe what it felt like to fly with Gajeel. But one word that could be used to describe the way the half-Iron Dragon flew, was terrifying. Gajeel was soaring through the air at speeds that could almost break the sound barrier. How that was possible with wings made of pure iron, Levy hadn't the faintest idea. Poor Lily, however, was having a little trouble keeping up with the speedy half-dragon and was working his **Aera** magic to its limits. The moment Gajeel returned to his normal size, he scooped up Levy and took off like the devil was on his tail.

Why Gajeel was in such a hurry to get help for Natsu, she wasn't really sure. Her mind went through a couple possibilities, but only a couple of them made any sense.

One, he knew that Natsu meant a lot to Lucy and Lucy was Levy's closest friend and he knew that she'd be sad if Lucy was sad.

Or:

Gajeel actually cared about Natsu. Like a little brother of sorts. They both were half-dragons and people born to both a dragon and a human were few and far between. Gajeel must have been glad to have another half-dragon around to keep up with him.

The petite bluenette dismissed that thought. That probably wasn't it, but Levy had a suspicion that her hypothesis was in the right place.

Levy pushed the thoughts away. She couldn't and shouldn't spend time trying to piece together Gajeel's motivation for rescuing Natsu and focus on her own. She wanted to help because he was Lucy's friend and he made her happy. In the year that Levy and Lucy had been friends, Levy had never seen Lucy so...carefree. Levy knew that Lucy cared about Natsu the same way she cared about Gajeel and if she found out that Natsu had been kidnapped, then she'd be devastated. And then...who knows?

An unexpected bump jolted Levy back to reality. Gajeel tried to say something over the wind, probably an apology of sorts for the unexpected turbulence on the jet stream.

Levy had made the mistake of opening her eyes and was greeted by the harsh needles of wind that quickly dried her eyes to the point to where they stung and she was forced to close them again. Her eyes however weren't the only thing being assaulted by the wind. The wind was tearing her periwinkle blue hair around like a sadistic blender, making it slap her in the face over and over.

The Solid Script Mage wanted to ask Gajeel when they were going to arrive in Magnolia, but she doubted that even with his sensitive hearing that her boyfriend would be able to hear her over the rush of the wind.

However, it wasn't long before she got the answer to her burning question. Gradually, the half-Iron Dragon's speed slowed to an easy glide. The air began to lose its chill and sting, gradually getting warmer and calmer.

Levy opened her eyes to see that they were descending over a very quent looking town, but Levy's eyes weren't on the town, they were on the massive building they were landing in front of. On the arch above the gate was the words "Fairy Tail" painted in swirling letters, below it was the same symbol that was stamped on Gajeel's shoulder.

The half-Iron Dragon's boots hit the ground with a solid _thud_ and as his feet hit the ground, his metallic wings vanished as it they were never there.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail, Shrimp." the half-Iron Dragon smirked, letting Levy down.

Lily landing gracefully on the ground next to Levy, his own wings disappearing with a small _pop_ and crossed his arms, a small smile on the ebony cat's face.

"It's good to be home." the cat noted.

"Too bad we aren't here for the usual reasons." Levy sighed.

Gajeel scoffed lightly and walked through the large double doors, his steel toed boots clapping loudly against the cobblestone as he went. Lily followed immediately after the half-Iron Dragon, but Levy hesitated for a moment.

She's never been to Fairy Tail before, so she wasn't sure what to expect from them. What would they think of her asking for help rescuing one of her friends?

The bluenette shock the thoughts out of her head. Why was she so nervous? They're not a bunch of hard-hearted roughians from the stories Lily had shared with her. Gathering her courage, Levy plunged through the guildhall doors.

And immediately got knocked over by a man that was half naked who had been thrown from somewhere else in the guild hall.

He immediately got off Levy, not seeming to have even noticed he landed on her and jumped right back into the fray with a war cry that was mostly lost in the chaos.

Scratch what she said before. They _were_ roughians.

It didn't take long however for Levy to locate Gajeel as he had also leapt into the brawl and was duking it out with a mountainous man with white hair and a strange arm but quickly changed sparring partners to the half naked guy that crashed into Levy. Lily was harder to find, but he was at the bar talking with a short, drunk-looking old man.

The ebony cat looked at Levy and nodded for her to come over. Willingly, she obeyed and started weaving through the crowd towards the bar, but was quite literally knocked off course when Gajeel crashed into her.

The petite girl let out a shocked shout as she collapsed under the weight of the massive man. Fortunately, almost as quickly as the weight appeared, it disappeared.

"Hey boxer briefs! Watch where you're throwin'!" the half-Iron Dragon shouted, "Y'ah almost made me kill Levy!"

The half naked man peered around Gajeel, who was standing in front of her like a giant wall.

"That's Levy? Wow. Lucy wasn't kidding when she said she didn't look like the type to be into 'bad-boys'."

Levy felt her face heat up a little bit out of embarrassment. Lucy had talked about her relationship with Gajeel to this strange man? Oh gods, how embarrassing.

While that was going through her head, Gajeel had disappeared back to the fight, and after dodging several other thrown people, Levy made it over to Lily.

"...and that's what happened Master Makarov." the ebony cat finished.

The short man, Makarov, who has seemed to have sobered up over the course of the conversation nodded grimly.

"I see. This is a grave matter indeed."

"Are you the master of this guild?" Levy asked.

Makarov looked up at Levy (which was strange for her since everyone usually had to look down at her). "And who might you be?"

"My name is Levy McGarden and Gajeel and I need your help."

The old man raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so you're Gajeel's girlfriend I've heard so much about. Pleased to meet y'ah! I'm Master Makarov."

"It's nice to meet you too Master Makarov, but-"

"Natsu and Lucy have gotten themselves in trouble with Blood Eagle." Makarov interrupted, "Lily already filled me in on the details and I will do whatever I can to help."

Levy blinked in surprise. "Really?"

"Of course." Makarov said jumping down from the counter, "Even though they are not a part of my guild, I still consider them my brats."

"That's right. Natsu and Lucy came here once."

"Yes and you can probably guess why."

The short old man cleared his throat. "LISTEN UP YOU BRATS!"

The fighting in the guild immediately quieted as the Master's roar rolled over the room.

"Two of our close friends are in danger. I'm sure you all remember the visitors to our guild from a few weeks ago."

The guild murmured in agreement. Looking around, Levy was astonished. It was amazing that in such a short amount of time, the pair was able to charm this many people. Especially considering that they weren't even here very long.

"Blood Eagle is the culprit, and though the reason behind Lucy's kidnapping is clear, we still are unsure why Blood Eagle was hired to kidnap Natsu."

Even more mutters filled the room until a lady with scarlet red hair stepped through the crowd.

"Master, I would like to volunteer for the rescue team." she declared.

Makarov nodded. "I was going to nominate you regardless, Erza. Gajeel, Erza, Gray...hmm. Where's Juvia and Laxus?"

A pale hand shot up from the crowd. "Juvia is right here Master!"

"Ah, good. Laxus! I know you're sulking up there."

A heavy sigh came from the balcony above before a blonde man with a lightning scar running over his right eye appeared from somewhere on the second level and leaned against the railing.

"What is it old man?" he asked, sounding annoyed.

"I want you and the Thunder Legion to accompany the rescue team."

Laxus scoffed. "Why should I drop everything to help some lousy half breed and his whiny princess of a girlfriend?"

Levy balled a fist, glaring daggers at the mage. "Lu-chan isn't a whiny princess and calling Natsu a half breed is just plain offensive!"

Laxus looked down at Levy. "Huh? Who the heck are you? Oi old man. Why'd y'ah let a little kid in here?"

A vein pulsed in Levy's head. "I'm not a little kid! I'm just short!"

"Eh. Makes no difference to me." he muttered boredly.

"Oi lightning rod!" Gajeel bellowed from somewhere in the crowd, "If y'ah got somethin' against us half-dragons, take it out on me and leave Levy outta it."

Where-ever Gajeel was in the crowd, Levy could see the electricity crackling between the two. The gears in Levy's head were spinning. Something bad must have happened between Laxus and a half-dragon at some point in his life, but was there really another half-dragon that was capable of any heinous action. But then again, what did she know? She only knew two half-dragons out of who knows how many. Not all of them could be like Natsu and Gajeel. At least one of them must have had a black heart. Still, what could have happened that was so horrible that it made Laxus despise half-dragons?

Finally Master Makarov sighed. "Fine then Laxus. If you're so firm on the topic."

The mage scoffed and disappeared deeper into the second floor once again. Even though Laxus was gone, Levy could still feel the tension that he had generated hanging in the air like a dense fog. Like a brewing storm.

"Alrighty then. We have our team, now go rescue our nakama!"

A determined cheer rose from the crowd as the named people gathered and headed for the door. Levy felt the need to follow them, but she hesitated. These people were all great mages. The most magic Levy ever used was when she needed to keep Gajeel in check. Sometimes she questioned why she even learned Solid Script magic in the first place if she was just going to run a bookstore the rest of her life.

"Oi Shrimp! Y'ah comin' or what?"

Levy's attention snapped to the guild hall's door. Everyone was waiting at the threshold.

"You want to save your friends, right?" the half naked man asked.

"Then come on. We'll need all the help we can get." the red haired lady smiled.

"Juvia would not like the idea of having a potential love rival, but she guesses you can come." the blue haired woman muttered.

Lily flew up next to Levy. "Come on Levy. We all know you're strong enough."

The petite bluenette nodded, fighting back tears of joy and ran across the hall to meet up with Gajeel and his friends.

They were going to rescue Lucy and Natsu.

That she swore.

…

 **A/N: I know a few of you may be wondering when I'll introduce Lucy's Stardress now that I've repeatedly introduced Urano Metria, but don't worry. I haven't forgotten about it, it's that since it's such an advanced skill I'm saving it for a little later in the story which isn't that far away, promise :3**

 **And I finally explained what the Ember Moon's significance is to Natsu. How is he going to get out of this one I wonder?**

 **Well you're just going to have to wait for the next chapter :)**

 ***Tennin= Japanese Buddhist creature, also known as a heavenly messenger**


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Oh my gosh, I have comment ninjas! I dunno why but two people have been total ninjas when they review my story and it's awesome, I love looking in the comments and finding that people have reviewed my story and I didn't know XD**

 **Enjoy the chapter and *ninja pose* nin, nin! :)**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

The first thing that Natsu noticed about what he assumed was the Tartarous guild hall was that it _stunk_. The air was almost suffocating and the half-Fire Dragon felt sick just breathing it in and it wasn't helping him at all that his draconic blood was fading faster by the second. The usual warmth that curled through his body was quickly cooling, leaving him to feel cold the full force of the cold air that leaked through the lid. He decided that the next time Lucy complained about being cold, he wouldn't tease her about it.

The ever-so slight movement of the jar bobbing up and down halted and a muffled voice vibrated through the glass. Natsu cursed that he couldn't hear what was being said. His hearing must have gone as well, now he just had human hearing.

Suddenly the lid spun off and the whole jar was turned over and roughly shook, dislodging the half-Fire Dragon from the confines of the jar and dropping him feet first onto what looked like stone, but since Natsu was no longer at his usual strength and grace, he didn't stick the landing and ended up face-planting.

"Return him to normal size." an unknown voice ordered.

"With pleasure."

A harsh blow to the center of his back followed by a tingle of magic coursing through his body. Natsu tried to sit up but found that Anty was standing next to him, not only not looking like a giant, but with the butt end of her mallet buried in his back and an annoyingly satisfied grin on her face.

"'Bout time you made me big again!" Natsu shouted.

Anty raised an eyebrow at the half-dragon and lifted the end of her mallet out of his back, but reached down and pulled him up painfully by his hair.

"Huh? Why's your hair black?" she asked.

Natsu didn't answer, both out of stubbornness and the fact that his scalp was hurting from Anty pulling his hair. If he tried to speak, all that would come out is 'ow, ow, ow, ow'.

"Maybe it's an effect from the anti-Ethernano?" Dewi suggested.

The unknown voice hummed in agreement. "Maybe. Who knows how anti-Ethernano effects half breeds."

The half-Fire Dragon's blood ran cold with anger. Natsu tore Anty's hand from his now jet black hair, stood up and faced the unknown person with rage burning in his eyes.

The man before him was the strangest guy Natsu had ever seen and that was a lot from someone who under normal circumstances has sakura pink hair. He had hair that was longer than Gajeel's and dressed in an old-fashioned suit. However, in his hands was a red leather book with the letters E, N, and D, embroidered on the cover in a spidery font.

Natsu immediately didn't like that book. He wasn't as sensitive to energies since he was a human now, but even he could clearly feel that there was a powerful demon sealed in that book.

Strangely, there seemed to be something binding the demon within the pages, something that felt oddly familiar.

"Mard Geer sees you can feel it, son of Igneel." the weird man said, "The power of our Master E.N.D.."

Natsu's eyes narrowed. "What the heck do you want from me?"

"Mard Geer says it's simple." he said, a chilling smile cracking on his face, "Mard Geer wants your blood."

The half-Fire Dragon barely even had a second after that sentence was completed as a vine of sharp thorns tore up from the ground. Natsu managed to move a majority out of the way, or so he thought.

The thorns suddenly changed course and pierced him through his stomach. The fact that he was being stabbed by a vine of continuous spikes of pain was bad enough to force a pained wail from the half-Fire Dragon and no matter how much he pulled on the vine, he couldn't get it to budge and in the end it just made his hands bleed as much as the wound in his stomach was.

Droplets of crimson traveled down the line of thorns in thin streams, following the pull of gravity, right until the end where it dripped off the thorns and splashed onto the cover of the book Mard Geer was holding underneath. Mard Geer's face twisted into a wicked smile as sharp as the thorns he had summoned to spear Natsu through.

The half-Fire Dragon pulled on the thorn vine even more desperately. Natsu didn't know what was sealed in that book, but the seal on it must be powerful if Mard Geer needed half-dragon blood to undo it.

And right now, Natsu didn't have half-dragon blood. He only had human blood.

And Natsu knew that it wouldn't do squat against the seal.

Drop after drop fell onto the cover of the book, but nothing happened. Mard Geer's smile faltered.

"Why is nothing happening? Did you pathetic humans capture the wrong half-dragon?"

Anty shock her head, a bead of sweat dripping down her forehead.

"No, sir. He was an exact match to your description."

"He was using Dragon Magic when we caught him. We swear!" Dewi exclaimed, sounding panicked.

"THEN WHY ISN'T HIS BLOOD UNSEALING MASTER E.N.D.?!" Mard Geer bellowed.

The strange man pulled the book from under the drip of Natsu's blood and held out his hand, letting a few of the crimson drops fall onto his hand, before he licked up the blood.

A few seconds passed and Mard Geer's Face contorted into rage. The ground rumbled and a tangle of thorny vines tore up from the ground and lashed themselves around Anty and Dewi, embedding their thorns into the dark mages' skin and drawing thin streams of sticky red blood.

The two dark mages cried out in pain and surprise as they were suspended in the air by the thorned vines.

"His blood is human." Mard Geer said, looking at the two Blood Eagle mages, a look in his eyes that could only be described as 'demonic', "You disappoint Mard Geer, human."

"W-We swear h-he was a half-dragon w-when we captured him!" Anty exclaimed, her voice trembling uncharacteristically.

"Then what happened?"

Mard Geer turned to Natsu, both of them locking into a harsh staring contest. Finally Mard Geer's expression crawled into an eerie smirk.

"Mard Geer sees now. Tonight is the beginning of your day of humanity."

"D-Day of humanity?" Dewi asked.

Mard Geer scowled and swung his arm. Piercing screams tore through the air behind Natsu. The half-dragon flinched out of reflex, hearing something warm and wet splatter against the ground behind him and finally two heavy thuds.

Then there was silence.

Natsu didn't even need to turn around to know what happened. Heavy footsteps echoed through the hall and came up behind him. As the footsteps halted directly behind him, the thorn vine retracted from his stomach. Natsu felt like he was going to keel over but a hard, clawed hand on his shoulder halted his descent.

"Kyoka." Mard Geer said, "Take our...guest...to the cells. Make sure when his power returns he can't use it."

"Yes, Mard Geer-sama."

Kyoka steered Natsu harshly towards a stairway leading down. Natsu wrenched around and threw a punch at Kyoka's face, but his fist was caught in a hard clawed hand and his whole arm was twisted painfully behind his back.

"Pathetic attempt." Kyoka muttered, clasping something cold and metallic on his wrist, "Are you really the son of the dragon that bested our master?"

Natsu gritted his teeth, trying to dig his heels into the ground to keep Kyoka from taking him down to what was most likely a dungeon.

"What the heck do you mean? You knew Igneel?"

"Only Master E.N.D. has encountered that dreadful lizard, and you can see how he ended up." Kyoka said, pushing the half-dragon down the stairs, her own strength easily overpowering Natsu's.

Natsu stumbled and caught himself. He hated being a human. Compared to his usual strength, he was so fragile and weak right now. The pinkette was already feeling weak, probably marginally from the blood-loss he suffered. If he wasn't a human right now, he could have shrugged this injury off no problem, but then this E.N.D guy would have been unsealed and Natsu had a feeling that the seal was on that book for a good reason.

"I'm sure he's bragged about it to you." Kyoka continued, pushing Natsu farther down the stairs, "About how he reduced Master's form to ash and bound his soul in that book with a powerful seal, too strong for anyone to break without a powerful anti-sealant."

"The old man never mentioned that even once." Natsu growled.

"Then he was a bigger fool than I thought."

With a final shove, Natsu tumbled backwards down the last few stairs and crashed into a rusty metal grate that shuttered against Natsu's head. The room became blurred as a dull throb pulsed through Natsu's skull. Natsu cursed to himself while screwing his eyes shut against the pain. Another set of heavy boots thudded against the ground accompanied by the slight _clank_ of metal and a frigid wind.

"Is this him, Kyoka? The son of Igneel?" a male voice asked.

"Yes."

"Hm. I thought his hair would be more...pink."

A cold hand grabbed Natsu's scarf and gently tugged it free from his neck. Immediately, Natsu disregarded the pain that wrecked through his body, snapped his eyes open and grabbed onto the scaled fabric before it could be pulled away completely.

"Don't you f***ing dare." he growled.

The man gripping the other end of Natsu's precious scarf simply chuckled as a cold stab of pain shot through Natus's body from the still open wound in his gut. Natsu shouted in pain and released his grip on the fabric, unwillingly letting it slip through his fingers.

"I'll be taking this to Mard Geer as a trophy. I'm sure he'll appreciate it."

Kyoka simply nodded and moved to let the man pass. Natsu could only watch him go, trembling from cold and rage. Without his fire magic and scarf, he was even more exposed to the frosty climate of the Tartarous guild hall. The half-Fire Dragon looked down at his wound and found a small spike of a purple hued ice wedged in it.

When the man left, the frigid climate followed and the ice spike melted. The air was still cold, but it had lost its bite when the man left. Something bothered Natsu about him though. He looked familiar in a way that Natsu couldn't place.

Unfortunately, he didn't get the luxury of time to try and remember why that man who stole his scarf looked familiar. Kyoka grabbed him by the collar of his vest and effortlessly tossed him into an open cell and slammed the door shut.

"You are fortunate we still need you alive, half breed."

The odd woman left after uttering those words, leaving Natsu in a heavy silence completely alone with his thoughts. Natsu lashed out with a hard punch against the grate in front of him, but it did little more than rattle the bars and scrape up his knuckles.

Natsu growled in frustration and sat against the far wall, his black hair falling in his face since it now lost its miraculous ability to defy gravity. Yet another reminder that for the time being, he was nothing but an average human.

What a time for the Ember Moon to arrive. Natsu wasn't sure if it was a blessing in disguise or just a plain curse. Right now, he was leaning more towards curse.

Sure, E.N.D.'s revival had been stalled, but now Natsu was completely helpless against an enemy that knew more about him than he did about them. And when the Ember Moon was over and his half-dragon abilities returned, who knows what they'll do to him.

He looked down at the object Kyoka had clasped on his wrist when he attempted to punch her. It was a thick metal cuff that didn't appear to be made of average metals like iron or steel. It had an almost magical glow to it that made Natsu suspect that this was a magic sealing cuff.

Why they didn't chose to bind his hands when they easily could have was questionable at best. When the Ember Moon was over and Dewi's Magic Blocking had worn off, his magic would return to him as well as his supernatural strength. Either Tartarous had forgotten that half-dragons were insanely strong both magically and physically, or they were confident that they could overpower him.

As annoying as his situation was, there was something that bothered him even more. Lucy was still missing and he didn't know if she was okay or not and it was driving him mad. The Celestial Mage had pulled him from a potentially life threatening situation without a hint of hesitation almost as many times as he had for her and she didn't seem to care that he wasn't entirely human.

What would Lucy think, seeming him as a weak, helpless human rather than the strong half-dragon she was so used to seeing?

"Well, it's Lucy, so she probably would do somethin' weird and flip out for a bit." he chuckled to himself.

A small ping of happiness sparked inside his heart thinking about his friend. And something that he was sorely lacking at the moment.

Determination. **(A/N: *Thinking about Lucy fills you with DETERMINATION* Sorry. I had to)**

He couldn't give up just yet. Where-ever Lucy was at the moment, she was waiting for him and he shouldn't keep her hanging, he knew that getting out of this situation was going to take a careful plan and patience.

Both of which aren't his strongest characteristics, but they are his best chance of getting out of here without giving Tartarous what they want.

So for now, he'd have to lay and wait for the right moment.

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Lucy was getting really sick of waking up in pain. Her head was throbbing against her skull and her body felt like someone had taken a vacuum to her and sucked out all her energy. Nonetheless, the Celestial Mage opened her eyes. She expected the light of the sun to blind her, but the sun had actually set from what Lucy could see out of the corner of her eye. But Lucy wasn't the only one in the room.

Lucy turned her head to the side and was face-to-face with Yukino. A brief surge of panic filled the blonde. Yukino looked so similar to Angel, the Celestial Mage from the Oracion Seis that Lucy would have lost her life to if Fairy Tail and the Aligned Forces hadn't shown up when they did. Lucy was scared that Yukino would be similar to the dark Celestial Mage.

"Who exactly are you?" Yukino asked.

Lucy blinked, her fear of the white haired mage forgotten for the moment.

"Why is everyone asking me that question lately?"

"You are very strange, Lucy-sama. You're powers are immeasurable and you have been in contact with people who walk the line between humanity and the supernatural." she said, "Why would we not ask who you are?"

Lucy sat up, quickly checking to see if her keys were still there or not, and thankfully finding them. It seems that Sabertooth don't feel the need to confiscate her keys. Lucy felt better knowing that she would have the support of her spirits if she needed it.

"I already told everyone." she said, "I'm Lucy."

"But Lucy what?" she insisted, "You are very reluctant to reveal your last name."

Lucy scowled. "If I told you what my last name is, you would think differently of me."

Yukino smiled softly, almost sympathetically at the blonde mage.

"A name doesn't define you anymore than mine does."

With an argument like that, Lucy actually felt compelled to tell the Celestial Mage her secret, but at the same time, she hesitated. Fortunately, she didn't have to make a decision that moment when the door opened.

"Yukino, is the girl up yet?" a smooth, yet edgy voice asked.

"Yes, Rufus-sama." Yukino nodded.

"Good. Because there's someone demanding to see her."

Lucy blinked in surprise. Was it Natsu? The prospect that it could be her half-dragon friend immediately got her swinging her legs over the side of the bed and pushing past the man in the doorway. Her ankle still hurt, but the pain had largely subsided since a few days ago to nothing more than a dull twinge of pain every other step.

The Celestial Mage found her way to the main entrance. However, her hopes of seeing her friend were immediately dashed when she laid eyes on a familiar fuchsia eyed dark mage.

Lucy gasped. "Jasper!?"

"Hello again, Heartfillia." the dark mage smirked.

Jasper had actually looked much the same as she had when Lucy last saw her, which was actually not that long ago. But the dark mage now bore bandages over her left eye and a new, angry looking scar ran across her face.

"So, you are the elusive Lucy Heartfillia." inquired the man next to Jasper, "You've been a large thorn in our side, getting two of my best arrested and stealing the vision from my daughter's left eye."

Lucy's jaw almost hit the floor. "'D-Daughter'!"

The man standing with Jasper did resemble her with his sharp fuchsia eyes and psychotic looking smile, but he had a leaner figure and his brown hair was veined with white and stuck straight up like it had been electrocuted.

As if to prove Lucy's suspicions, lightning began to crackle around the man. But it wasn't just lightning that clinging to him. Dark clouds were forming and droplets of water hung suspended in the air. This man was like a walking storm system.

"I am Jupus Thuning, the master of the Blood Eagle guild. You have caused my proud guild shame, and I will erase it." he said, his tone darkening.

Jupus lifted a hand towards Lucy, but the Celestial Mage was one step ahead.

" **Open! Gate of the Scorpion: Scorpio**!"

In a flash the scorpion spirit was there, a wild grin on his face.

" **Thunder Flash**!" Jupus chanted.

" **Sand Blaster**!"

Scorpio countered with a heavy blast of sand. Lucy shuddered internally, remembering when that powerful blast was aimed at _her_. The lighting clashed with the sand, swirling violently around each other in a deadly dance before both dissipated.

"Whew!" Scorpio exclaimed, "Straight into the fire, huh Miss Lucy?"

"Sorry it was such short notice Scorpio."

"Quite alright. Nothin' more than a wake up call."

The whole Sabertooth guild tensed, finally realizing that they had willingly let two powerful dark mages into their guild hall. The magical pressure was almost suffocating.

"Hey! What's goin' on down here?" a familiar voice demanded, "Is that blonde chick fightin' again?"

"Sting, where are you going?"

The crowd parted and out came Sting and Rogue, both looking a little annoyed, though both probably for different reasons. The two half-dragon's attention however immediately zeroed in on Jasper.

"It's you again." Sting muttered, "Didn't we take you to jail?"

"Huh? Who the hell are you two?" Jasper asked, clearly annoyed.

"We are the Twin Dragons and if you are wise, you would leave our guild." Rogue scowled.

Jupus didn't even face the two half-dragons. He looked slightly unimpressed by the pair and simply flicked his hand in their direction. A barrage of rain drops hit Sting and Rogue, but they looked unfazed by the attack.

"What the heck was that?" Sting asked, shaking water off himself like a dog.

Rogue, who was also soaking wet, looked as unimpressed as Jupus did. Well, it was actually kind of hard to tell since his inky black hair was plastered over his eyes. The dark mage in question looked slightly surprised, but nonetheless swung his arm down.

" **Lighting Strike**!"

The lightning struck the spot where Sting and Rogue were standing, blinding everyone in the guild. When the light faded, the two half-dragons were gone. A choir of shocked gasps rose from the members of Sabertooth.

"It seems they were all bark and no bite." Jupus said, swinging his arm towards Lucy.

In a quick flash, Lucy had her whip out and got Jupus tangled in it.

"What?"

" **White Dragon's…** "

" **Shadow Dragon's…** "

" **ROAR**!"

Two funnels of light and darkness came from opposite ends of the ceiling and met as they struck Jupus. The dark guild master shouted in surprise and Jasper seemed enraged.

"You! You're supposed to be dead! No one has survived father's lightning attack while soaking wet before!" she shouted, "Water conducts electricity to its maximum! You two should be a pair of extra crispy half breeds!"

The two half-dragons landed with a heavy thud on the ground in front of Lucy. Both were throwing of a hefty amount of magic power that made the hairs on Lucy's arms stand on end. Jupus looked like he was going to have a heart attack and attempted to swing his arm again, forgetting that Lucy's whip was still restraining him.

"What's the matter old man?" Sting teased, ignoring Jasper, "Can't attack?"

"Weak scum like you shouldn't lead a guild." Rogue said.

Jupus grunted. "Jasper, take them out."

The fuchsia eyed woman grinned wickedly and cracked her knuckles. "With pleasure."

Sting scuffed. "What're y'ah gonna do? Throw more water on us?"

Jasper cackled, a dark pink aura whipping violently around her. "No. I'm going to rip you to shreds."

Before either of the three mages were able to ask what exactly she meant, Jasper started to change. Her body grew large and scaley, her fingers longer and sharper. She kept growing and changing until she had become a massive dragon.

"W-What kind of magic is that?" Lucy asked, her voice trembling.

Jupus chuckled. "My daughter is the pride of Blood Eagle. A master of **Transformation** magic. There isn't anything or anyone she can't turn into."

The Jasper Dragon roared, making the whole guild tremble. Lucy shrank away, gripping hard on her whip, but she felt her connection to Scorpio snap like a too-taut string. Scorpio had returned to the Celestial Spirit World.

Sting and Rogue, however, looked completely unfazed by Jasper's new form.

"That was a foolish choice." Rogue said, "Turning into a dragon before two half-dragons."

Sting laughed lightly. "What do y'ah say Rogue? Like old times?"

A phantom of a smirk flashed on the black haired half-dragon's face. "Like old times."

A sudden surge of magic almost knocked Lucy off her feet as a pair of polar opposite auras surrounded the two half-dragons in front of her.

" **White Drive**."

" **Shadow Drive**."

Jasper roared. "You think you can defeat a dragon!"

"We know we can. We've done it before." Rogue scowled.

"Besides. You aren't a real dragon, you're just a cheap imitation." Sting said.

The half-White dragon looked over his shoulder at Lucy. "Think you can handle the old man?"

Lucy looked at him in surprise for a moment before nodding hesitantly.

"What are you talking about Sting?" the half-Shadow Dragon asked, "She took out Minerva, of course she can handle it."

 _Well these two certainly have a lot of faith in me._ Lucy beamed mentally.

Sting shrugged. "Yeah, but y'ah never know. She's still a weak human after all."

 _Or not._

"Are you going to fight the dragon or are you going to make fun of me?" Lucy asked, curling her fingers around her keys.

"Eh, guess you're right." Sting shrugged, "Let's go Rogue!"

The Twin Dragons leapt into action and at the same time Lucy summoned another spirit.

" **Open! Gate of the Golden Bull: Taurus!** "

The cow spirit appeared and this time didn't spend any time oogleing over Lucy's body and set straight to work.

"What do you need smashed Moooooiss Lucy?" he asked.

Lucy pointed to Jupus, who was still trying to escape Lucy's whip with little success.

"Take him out Taurus."

Taurus charged, swinging his axe at Jupus. "Right away Moooooiss Lucy."

However, as soon as the cow spirit got close to Jupus, he was struck by lightning.

"Taurus!" Lucy cried out.

"Sorry Mooooiss Lucy."

With that, Taurus disappeared back into the Celestial Spirit World, leaving behind a shocked Lucy. Jupus started laughing.

"Foolish girl. You think your spirits stand a chance against me?" he cackled, "I am the Master of Blood Eagle! You cannot possibly hope to defeat me!"

The wind began to pick up at an alarming rate around the building until it started to pick up wizards and throw them around. Lucy didn't even need to look to know that Sting and Rogue were having a tough time keeping their footing as they fought Jasper. The only thing keeping Lucy from also being tossed around by the winds with the members of Sabertooth was her whip, which still coiled around Jupus like a deadly snake refusing to release its prey.

"I am the God of Storms! You can't possibly hope to defeat a god!"

Lucy squeezed her eyes shut and dug her feet into the carpet against the wind as rain started to hammer her in heavy sheets and slowly began to pool at her feet as it began to soak into her socks.

Water.

Lucy's eyes snapped back open.

"Oh, I'm really going to regret this." she muttered, grabbing for a gold key.

The Celestial Mage ducked down and thrusted the glittering key into the puddle.

" **Open! Gate of the Water Bearer: Aquarius!** "

The puddle before Lucy exploded upwards and rained down even more water upon the blonde's head as the mermaid spirit appeared. And she looked rather cross.

"A puddle. I can take a river but a freaking puddle!? ARE YOU TRYING TO MAKE ME MAD, BRAT!?" the hot-headed water spirit demanded, "THAT'S IT! I'M WASHING YOU ALL AWAY!"

Aquarius lifted her urn high over her head, a vortex of water began swirling in the mouth until she swung it down and a surge of water rushed out and into the guild, quickly flooding the whole place. Mages screamed in surprise as they were snatched from the air and caught up in the rushing current of water.

If this wasn't the first time Aquarius had swept her away, Lucy would be surprised too as the water swirled her around the guild hall until it finally flushed out.

When the water was finally all gone, Jasper had turned back into a human and was rendered unconscious as well as Jupus and the mages of Sabertooth were scattered out around the guild in soaking wet messes.

Lucy dragged herself up into a sitting position from her new spot by the far wall as Aquarius floated down in front of her.

"If you summon me from a toilet next, you're dead."

Lucy paled. "S-So sorry!"

Aquarius "hmph"ed and disappeared. Lucy let out a sigh of relief and melted against the wall, her fatigue finally catching up with her. The Sabertooth guild hall was eerily silent until a booming voice roared.

"WHAT HAPPENED HERE!"

Immediately every member of Sabertooth was up and standing, lined up like toy soldiers as Jiemma stood in the doorway. Immediately everyone pointed at Lucy, who was the only one not standing up.

The Sabertooth guild master looked like he was going to explode from rage.

"First you defeat my daughter, next you blow a hole in my guild's wall, and now you flood the place." he growled, "Why are you so irresponsible with that power of your's?"

Lucy didn't understand where Jiemma was getting at, but the rest of the guild did.

"M-Master!? You aren't seriously considering…"

"Making that girl a member!?"

"SILENCE!" Jiemma roared, "She is a strong mage. Even stronger than my own pathetic daughter. Why would I not want her in the guild?"

Lucy blinked in surprise and got to her feet.

"Listen, I appreciate the offer. I really do. But I've got plans of my own and none of them involve joining a guild right now."

Another choir of shocked gasps followed by whispers.

"She declined a direct offer to join Sabertooth?"

"Is this girl for real?"

Jiemma looked like he was going to explode again. "What exactly are these 'plans'?"

"That is none of your concern." Lucy scowled.

The Celestial mage stared off with Jiemma for a moment before the Sabertooth master finally broke off and left without another word. Once again, her own boldness surprised her. Natsu really was rubbing off on her.

A small smile tugged at her face thinking about the hot-headed half-dragon, but quickly disappeared. He wasn't here right now. She knew that he was probably looking for her and she should start looking for him and let him know she's okay.

A heavy arm being slung over her shoulders broke Lucy from her thoughts.

"That was a pretty impressive show." Sting remarked casually, "Didn't think you had it in y'ah."

"What? With me being a human and all?"

Sting just chuckled.

"Hey, where's Minerva? I haven't seen her since the fight. Is she okay?"

The blonde half-dragon looked at Lucy like she had just grew a second head.

"Didn't you hear? Because she lost against you, Minerva was kicked out of Sabertooth."

...

Levy's POV:

...

The first road block the rescue team faced in their journey to save their friends, was that they had no idea where they were. The group was starting with saving Natsu, since he was probably in the most danger at the moment. But to Levy, it was meant as a way to protect her dear friend, Lucy. Levy knew the Celestial Mage well enough to know that she would be very upset if she found out that Natsu was in danger.

But that still didn't give them any hints to where the half-Fire Dragon was taken to.

Night had long since fallen and the moon hung overhead, tonight however it was a strange flame color. The rescue team had set up camp next to a road behind a hill and was trying to figure out who may have ordered Natsu's kidnapping

"Geez. Why the heck did flame brain get himself captured?" Gray complained.

The blue haired mage, Juvia huffed and nodded her head in agreement.

"If Gray-sama is mad at this 'flame brain' then Juvia will be too."

A swift, yet hard blow to the head, courtesy of a certain Titania quieted the two immediately.

"We need to focus on finding leads. As far as we know, Natsu could not have a lot of time and we have no idea where to look."

Levy sighed and started to think. She didn't know a lot about Natsu's past before he met Lucy. Really, she only knew as much as the Celestial Mage who introduced her to him. As far as she knew, there wasn't anyone who would want something from Natsu. However, Gajeel brought up the point of Natsu's half-dragon blood. What could someone want with that? And if they wanted half-dragon blood, why didn't Dewi and Anty take Gajeel when he was rendered to a small size? It wasn't making any sense. What was so unique about Natsu that made his blood different from Gajeel's?

Suddenly, a body tumbled onto the road from the hill above and into the road in front of them. Erza was first to approach the body. Levy would have gone too, but Gajeel stopped her, moving his arm protectively in front of her.

"Gajeel..? What is it?"

The half-Iron Dragon's red eyes narrowed at the person. "It's her."

"'Her'?" Juvia echoed.

"Her who?" Gray asked.

Erza rolled the girl onto her back to check her over for injuries. And found plenty.

"She needs medical attention right away!" the **Requip** mage ordered.

"That girl's the one who shrunk me and kidnapped Natsu." Gajeel finally stated.

Levy looked closer at the girl's face and Gajeel was right. She was the same girl that had attacked the train yesterday. The one that had the giant mallet and the short temper. But her mallet was gone now.

She looked like she had been dragged through Hell and back. Her face was deathly pale, her hair a tangled mess and her clothes torn and crusted with dried blood from still open wounds around her body. And one of her legs was twisted at a painfully odd angle. She looked almost dead, how she was alive was a mystery.

"How did she get here like that?" Levy whispered.

Gajeel's nose twitched and a throaty growl vibrated in his throat.

"Erza, get away from her." he warned.

The redheaded mage looked up at him. "Why?"

"There's somethin' weird about her smell. Just bein' near it's makin' me sick."

Juvia nodded hesitantly. "Juvia is feeling ill as well. It's like Juvia's magic is being drained just being near her."

"What the heck is wrong with her?" Gray asked, his shirt now missing.

The girl's eyes snapped open and she gasped, sitting up. Quickly she cried out in pain and fell back down onto her back, breathing heavily as if she was desperate for air.

"Oh my gods. Oh my gods…" she whispered, tears dripping from the corners of her eyes, "He killed her…that demon...he killed Dewi..."

Gajeel stormed over to the girl and picked her up easily to his eye level by the front of her ripped shirt.

"Where the heck did you take the pink-haired idiot, Anty?" he demanded.

Unfortunately, Anty didn't appear to be listening and kept muttering to herself.

"She's traumatized." Levy murmured.

A sob tore from Anty's mouth. "Dam that Mard Geer. Dam Tartarous to Hell!"

Cold rippled through Levy's body. "T-Tartarous!? One of the three cornerstones of the Balam Alliance!?"

"He killed Dewi...and we did our job! We swear he was a half-dragon when we caught him!" Anty muttered.

Her voice was pleading and completely emotionally wrecked. It was hard for Levy to believe that this babbling mess of a girl was from one of the most feared dark guilds in the country.

"Gajeel. Put her down." Erza said blankly.

The half-Iron Dragon continued to suspend the girl in the air as she sobbed and babbled incoherently. Levy watched his expression. Gajeel's facial expression showed nothing, but his eyes…

There was shock and pity shining clearly in them. Maybe even sympathy.

Levy stood up and carefully walked to her boyfriend's side, gently gripping his hand.

"Gajeel…put her down. Please."

Reluctantly, Gajeel obeyed and set Anty down. The dark mage's actions didn't change and she continued bawling senselessly.

"This chick's from a dark guild?" Gray finally said.

"Juvia believes this girl just lost a close friend." the blue haired water mage said gently.

Gray watched Anty with a puzzled expression. "I didn't think they cared for their own."

"Tartarous…" Gajeel mumbled, "Freakin' Salamander got himself in deep."

Levy sighed and looked up at the moon. "What does Tartarous want with Natsu?"

"I dunno…" the half-Iron Dragon said, "But whatever it is, it can't be good."

"How are we even going to find their guild?" Gray asked, "Not even the Magic Council knows where it is."

"No." Erza agreed, "But she does."

All eyes turned to the sobbing dark mage.

"E-Erza. Juvis doesn't think we're going to get answers from her right now." the water mage sweat-dropped.

"No, but maybe when she calms down?" Levy suggested.

"Let's hope that's soon." Gajeel said, "Whatever Tartarous wants Natsu for, it's got somethin' to do with his old man."

Levy raised an eyebrow. "Huh? What does this have to do with his dragon parent?"

"Think about it Shrimp." he said, "The sobfest shrunk me when we last fought. If they were just lookin' for a half-dragon, they would have just taken me."

Gray snickered. "You got beat by her? Nice one bolts-for-brains."

Levy shot a glare at the ice mage. "Gray. Not the time."

The Solid Script mage looked back up to Gajeel. "I think you're right. I was thinking the same thing earlier. But what's so special about Natsu's father that sets him apart from you?"

The half-Iron Dragon shrugged. "Hell if I know. But whatever it is, we're going to find out one way or another."

"Is there any _good_ news in this?" Gray moaned.

"Yeah, there actually is snow pansy." Gajeel grunted, "Natsu must have begun his day of humanity."

"'Day of humanity'?" Juvia echoed.

The half-Iron Dragon nodded. "Half-dragons have a day of the year where they loose their supernatural abilities and become completely human. Apparently, Natsu's must have begun tonight. Ain't that lucky?"

"That it is." Erza noted, "If Tartarous needs Natsu because of his dragon blood, then eliminating it for a day will buy us time to find him."

Levy nodded. "Still, we shouldn't waste time. We only have one day before his powers return and I have a feeling that Tartarous will be ready to deal with any outbursts he has when they do."

"Shrimp's right." Gajeel grunted, "And the first step to savin' Natsu is findin' Tartarous's guild hall."

"Anty's got to know." Levy muttered, "But she's emotionally wrecked right now."

"Well, we're just gonna have ta calm 'er down enough ta get what we need."

Erza clapped her hands. "Alright, that will be our task for tonight. No one sleeps until we get the location of Tartarous's guild hall!"

Everyone groaned. It was going to be a long night.

...

 **A/N: Was this chapter worth the wait? Sorry I took so long. I was on break last week, but I got busy with a bunch of other stuff so I couldn't work on the story very much and then I got writer's block with this and started working on my OC story instead and it just got messy.**

 **Unfortunately, I've got Finals coming up in school and I'll have less time to write because I'll be (trying to do) studying, doing Review packets, and preparing for speeches and seminars *sobs* and then when Winter Break finally comes around I won't be able to post very many chapters because I'll be spending time with family.**

 **Sorry if I leave you all off on a cliffhanger later next month because I have no idea how I'll leave the story off when my life gets insane. My goal is to wrap up the Tartarous/Blood Eagle Arc, but I'm not sure that'll happen.**

 **Good luck to anyone else suffering through Finals Prep and see y'ah all next chapter :)**


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Hello Universe! I'm finally updating! Sorry I took forever. And I apologize if I didn't characterize Minerva right, she's a lot different here than she is in canon.**

 **Usagi Tsukino (Guest)** **: You can survive! I believe in you! And you should know by now that cliffhangers are my thing ;)**

 **dragonhuntingslayer : You didn't stay up all night just to read my fanfic, did you? 0-0 Either way, glad it was worth it :3**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Lucy couldn't believe her ears.

"M-Minerva got excommunicated!?"

Sting nodded. "Losing is something Master doesn't tolerate. If you lose, you're out. And that applies to everyone, even his daughter."

"Minerva is Jiemma's daughter?" Lucy blinked.

Unlike Jupus and Jasper (who the Rune Knights were taking away), Jiemma and Minerva look nothing alike. But Lucy couldn't believe what she was hearing. Jiemma kicked Minerva out of Sabertooth just because she lost _one_ fight?

"Yep." Sting said, "Hard to see isn't it? But from what I heard, Minerva takes after her mother, the Goddess of Strategy. She's the one who gave Minerva her power of **Territory** magic."

"Where's her mom now?"

The half-White Dragon shrugged. "Dunno. She disappeared a long time ago."

 _Just like the dragons...do any supernatural parents stick around?_ Lucy pondered glumly.

"Do you know where Minerva is?"

"Why do you want to know? You aren't seriously thinking of trying to _apologize_ are you?"

'Well, I can't leave things as they are."

Sting scuffed, removing his arm from her shoulders and walking away. "Humans."

Lucy didn't even watch the blonde half-dragon go and immediately began searching for the only person she saw as an ally in this place.

"Yukino!" Lucy called.

The white haired mage turned and looked at Lucy was a surprised look.

"Lucy-sama? What is it?" she asked.

"Do you know where Minerva is?"

Yukino went silent for a moment and nodded. "Why do you wish to know where Minerva-sama lives?"

"..." Lucy sighed, "I want to try and smooth things over with her. I don't think she'll be too happy that I got her kicked out of the guild, even if I didn't mean to."

"Alright. As you wish Lucy-sama. Follow me."

…

The white haired Celestial Mage didn't stick around after dropping Lucy off at Minerva's. Of course, Lucy couldn't blame her. To say the aura surrounding this place was intimidating was putting it gently. Needless to say, just being near the place made Lucy shudder.

Minerva lived in a mansion-like home, of course it wasn't as big as Heartfilia Manor, but it was still huge. The outside shrubs were neatly trimmed, the flowerbeds tended to, and the windows cleaned. But despite its best efforts, the foreboding aura still clung to it like a cobweb.

Lucy swallowed nervously and knocked lightly on the large oaken double doors that served as an entranceway.

Lucy couldn't help but look up at the sky. The moon sure was strange tonight. Instead of its usual silvery-white glow, the moon was a flaming orange. Looking at it vaguely reminded the Celestial Mage of a certain half-Fire Dragon's flames and it made her a little sad.

Lucy really wished that Natsu were here now. His confidence would be really helpful to Lucy right now.

She considered leaving and trying again later, but before she could turn around and walk back down the front path, the door opened. Half of a familiar face was illuminated in the orange-red light of the moon.

A disgusted sigh came from the dark entryway. "It's you. What do you want?"

"Minerva? I-I wanted to apologize."

"'Apologize'? Why?"

"I...I heard you got kicked out because you lost against me."

Minerva scoffed. "I don't want your pity. Now leave me alone before my patience runs out."

The door began to close, but Lucy stopped it with her foot when she saw something she knew all too well glittering in the corners of Minerva's eyes.

"Why are you crying?" Lucy asked gently.

A shaky scoff. "I'm not crying, what are you talking about?"

The pressure trying to close the door stopped and Lucy gently opened the door. Minerva had retreated somewhere deeper inside the house, but Lucy could hear quiet sniffs from in the upstairs.

"M...Minerva?"

The sobbing stopped. "Go away." a choked voice ordered.

Lucy's brown eyes settled on the stairs leading up and hesitantly stepped on the first stair, then the next, and the next, until she was at the top of the stairs. Sitting against one of the many doors lining the hallway was Minerva. The half-god was trying hard to cry quietly into her knees and was succeeding, but Lucy could clearly see Minerva's body shudder with every quiet sob.

At first glance, it was incredibly hard to believe that Minerva was a powerful half-god with an ice-cold demeanor. She looked so damaged right now.

Lucy frowned. Of course she was hurt. Her own father practically disowned her, her mother wasn't around, she didn't have any friends, and she was all alone. Minerva's situation was eerily similar to her own when her mother passed away.

Lucy quietly tip-toed over to Minerva and sat down next to her against the wall. She thought of trying to comfort her, but the Celestial Mage couldn't think of anything to say that could make it hurt less. Once again, another familiar scenario.

"Why are you here?" Minerva asked.

"I told you, I wanted to apologize."

"And I told you, I don't want your pity."

Lucy shook her head. "I wasn't offering pity."

Minerva looked up from her knees to look at Lucy. "Than what _are_ you offering?"

"Sympathy." Lucy said simply, "My father was the same as yours when my mother died. He didn't flat out disown me, but he acted like he did. I didn't have anyone to turn to either, so I know what you're going through and how much it hurts inside."

"Your life...it's eery how similar it is to my current situation."

Lucy chuckled breathily. "I was thinking the same thing. I know you're upset that you were kicked out of Sabertooth, and I'm sorry I had a hand in that. If I had known what was going to happen if you lost, I wouldn't have fought back."

Minerva shook her head. "Why?"

"Huh?"

"Why are you being so kind to me after I forced you to fight against your will?"

Lucy smiled softly. "Well, I'm kind of used to having to fight people. It's become a regular part of my life."

"Is it because of that half-dragon you are friends with?" the half-god asked.

Lucy sighed. "Yeah. We go on adventures together. I'm trying to help him get his wings."

"Ah. So is that why Sting brought you to the guild?" Minerva chuckled.

The Celestial Mage laughed. "Exactly. He thought I could tell him how to get wings."

"And did you?"  
Lucy nodded. "Yeah. But I strongly doubt that he'll be able to get wings with the heart he has at the moment."

Minerva nodded. "A half-dragon's power is regulated by their emotions. The stronger the emotions, the stronger the half-dragon becomes. But Sting and Rogue disregarded the source of their powers by believing they don't need emotion to be strong."

"You know a lot about half-dragons, don't you?"

"Of course. It's difficult not to when you were part of the same guild as two of them. Especially when they boast out how strong they are every other hour. Well, Sting at least."

Minerva's smile faltered and she lowered her head.

"But what am I going to do now? Sabertooth was my life, where else am I going to find a place to work? There probably aren't a lot of opportunities for half breeds."

"I wouldn't say that." Lucy grinned, "I know two other guilds that have half-dragons in them. I'm sure either one would be thrilled to have you join."

The half-god stayed quiet.

"And if guilds don't work out, you could always come to Hajimari and Levy and I could hire you to help us work the shop."

Still, silence hung between Lucy and Minerva. It was awkward beyond measure, but Lucy tried not to show it. Until Minerva finally drew a shaky breath and answered.

"I still don't understand."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "What don't you understand?"

"You're being kind. I'm not like you. I'm a half breed, a freak of nature, something that will never belo-."

Lucy pulled Minerva into a hug before she could finish her sentence. The half-god gasped in surprise at the sudden movement.

"Minerva, _never_ believe you're a freak. Sure, you're different from the average person, but that's what makes you, you." Lucy said, "It's okay to be different. But just because you're different, doesn't mean you don't belong."

Minerva seemed to finally break and let out all her bottled up emotions while Lucy helped console her until she calmed down. It was clear to Lucy that even if there was a huge difference in their level of strength -half-dragons, half-gods- they could still feel too. Just the same as anyone else.

...

Levy's POV:

...

Levy was ready to drop. It was midnight and they still hadn't gotten what they wanted from Anty. She had calmed down significantly, but she was still too unstable to get any solid answers from at the moment.

The dark mage was still a sobbing, babbling mess sitting in the middle of the Fairy Tail rescue team's temporary camp, rocking back and forth in the featile position.

Gajeel's energy was wearing as thin as his patience. Even if he was half-dragon, it did nothing to help him keep awake. There was a time now and then where he was about to nod off but jerked himself awake when he almost fell over. Gray and Juvia were starting to doze off too.

Erza, however, was still impossibly energetic and was giving Anty her attempt at comforting. In reality, it was a very harsh pep talk that did more harm than good from the looks of it.

Levy was trying to think of a way to get Anty to calm down enough to tell them where Tartarous's guild hall is and maybe if they were lucky, why Tartarous wanted Natsu in the first place. But Levy was so tired, she was brain-dead at this point. Any thoughts she tried to string together got lost in the haze of her drowsiness. Erza wasn't about to let anyone sleep unfortunately and knocked Levy on the head with a hard hit.

The Solid Script mage immediately jolted to attention.

"No one sleeps until we get an answer." the Requip mage reminded her.

"Erza, I hate to have to be the one to point it out, but," Gray said, "we're all too tired to think of ways to calm sobfest down."

The redhead looked over her shoulder at the ice-maker mage and he shivered and shrank behind Juvia, attempting to use her as a human shield.

"Y'ah gott anny ideas Shrimp?" Gajeel slurred, exhaustion in his tone.

Levy shook her head. "I'm too tired to think. Erza, can the rest of us please get some sleep? We'll be able to come up with better methods if we're rested."

Erza crossed her arms. "No one is sleeping until we get the information we need."

"Than haw come snow-pansy and wadda works getta sleep?" Gajeel muttered, his words getting fuzzy.

Levy peered around Erza and Gajeel was indeed correct. Juvia and Gray had fallen asleep leaning against the tree. Juvia had her head resting on Gray's bare shoulder and the ice mage was resting his head on her's. If Levy wasn't dead on her feet, she would be smiling.

"They'd make a cute couple." Levy muttered, stifling a yawn.

Apparently Erza agreed and sighed. "I guess I will leave them be for now."

"Whadda 'bout the rest of us?" the half-Iron Dragon muttered crossly.

Erza looked like she was going to murder Gajeel when Levy spoke up.

"Guys, have you noticed how quiet Anty got all of a sudden?"

Immediately Erza and Gajeel both swung around to face where the dark mage was. Or rather, where she had been.

"That ain't good."

"We must find her immediately. She's our only lead in finding Natsu."

The redheaded mage grabbed Gajeel by the hair and pulled him off the log he was sitting on and practically tossing him on the ground.

The half-Iron Dragon shot up, wide awake and not happy at all.

"Oi! Erza, what the-"

Levy cleared her throat, cutting her boyfriend off before he could curse at the Titania and make his grave any deeper than it already was.

"Gajeel, you are the best tracker among us. Could you please help us look for Anty?" the petite mage requested.

Gajeel folded his arms over his chest and 'hmph'ed. "Only 'cause y'ah asked me nicely."

With Gajeel on the case, tracking the dark mage down was a thankfully easy task to complete. Levy hypothesised that Anty was still in a fragile mental state, which in turn lead to her not being as mindful of covering her tracks as she may normally be.

Anty's trail lead the trio over the hill, back the way the dark mage tumbled. It baffled Levy how she was able to cover so much ground with a broken leg, but she seemed to heading in a northeastern direction, taking a lightly treaded path that would have been impossible to spot if it wasn't for Gajeel leading the charge.

"Hey Erza. I think Anty's heading to the Tartarous guild." Levy said.

The Requip mage nodded, still keeping her eyes firmly set on Gajeel's back, making sure that she doesn't lose track of him.

"Levy. Head back to the camp and get Juvia and Gray. If we are to break into the Tartarous guild hall, than we will need all hands on deck."

The bluenette nodded. "Right."

Turning on her heel, she sprinted back the way she came as fast as she could. Her bare arms and legs would surely pay the price for her rapid pace, but she knew it would be well worth it.

The ground started sloping steeply and at her fast pace, Levy's legs quickly got away from her control and she lost her footing, rolling down the other half of the hill and crashing harshly into one of the logs that the group had used as seats around their campfire.

The air grew chilly.

"Who's there?" Gray's voice demanded.

"Come to think of it, where did everyone go?" Juvia's voice asked.

Levy raised her hand above the log and pulled herself up.

"It's just me Gray." the petite mage assured, "Erza, Gajeel, and I left to track down Anty."

Gray relaxed and the chill disappeared from the air.

"Why would you need to track Anty down?"

Levy sweat-dropped. "She disappeared."

The ice-maker mage face-palmed. "Okay, so why are you here?"

"We believe Anty is returning to the Tartarous guild hall. Perhaps to get revenge for her friend that was killed."

Gray scoffed. "I don't think that's gonna happen with the condition she's in."

"Gray-sama is correct." Juvia agreed, "Anty was in really rough shape. Juvia thinks she would be lucky to be able to take down one person."

"That's exactly why I came. We're dealing with one of the Balam Alliance, so we're probably going to need all hands on deck."

Gray nodded. "Alright. Let's get moving before Erza and the metal compactor get too far ahead."

With Levy leading them, they all caught up with Erza and Gajeel fairly quickly. Gajeel briefly scolded the petite mage for disappearing on him and Lily greeted her, but she wasn't really listening. Her mind was trying to spin together some answers, but she was running into the same problem as earlier. She was so tired that she couldn't hold a single thought in her head and it frustrated her that she couldn't use the one tool she was best with.

Levy was too absorbed in her attempts to come up with answers that she didn't notice that Gajeel had stopped and bumped into the half-Iron Dragon's back, though it didn't really do anything to him.

"W-What..? What is it Gajeel?' Levy yawned.

He didn't answer.

Everyone else seemed to freeze in a mystified shock since they were able to see around the towering man, but Levy couldn't because she was much shorter than them and had to try to look around Gajeel.

"What is everyone looking-"

In front of them, sitting in a steep-sided crater was a massive cube-like structure covered in strange foliage. The place threw off a menacing aura that froze Levy to the spot. If she wasn't already dead tired, she definitely was now. Just being within thirty yards of the bazar building made Levy's legs feel like they would give any moment.

Gray was first to speak. "Is that…"

"Tartarous?" Juvia finished.

Gajeel nodded meekly, not diverting his eyes from the structure. "The sobfest's scent goes right in."

"So Natsu is in there?" Erza asked.

"Most likely." Levy shrugged.

"In that case, we shall rest and recover our strength."

"FINALLY!" everyone cheered.

"Then, we take Tartarous by storm."

…

 **A/N: Initiate Plan T! TAKE 'EM BY STORM! I miss those days, don't all of you? The manga has gotten so anguishy that it makes my heart hurt for them. To compensate, I'll try to wrap this arc up quickly so I can insert an emergency injection of NaLu fluff, because we all need it.**

 **See y'ah all next chapter and remember SLEEP IS IMPORTANT!**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: Oh my gods. This story has been viewed over 20,000 times….*screams in pillow*.**

 **Okay, so all of you are probably wondering when Lucy and Natsu are going to reunite because it's been almost 10 chapters since they've seen each other face to face. But worry not, they will be meeting soon. Ish. To be honest, I don't know. Hopefully it'll be in the next few chapters because I've still got some massive things planned out and it may take a few chapters.**

 **But I will make them meet again soon. I promise.**

 **Usagi Tsukio (Guest)** **: Good. Then I'm doing my job right :3**

 **fanficlove2014** **: Glad you agree. I hope it gets better**

 **Alaina Kuski** **: *nods* I feel bad about that, but I figured that her dad (being the jerk he is) would tell her she's worthless and a freak all her life, so that's where all that sadness came from.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

To say Natsu felt like garbage was the understatement of the century. He felt worse than that. The half-Fire Dragon-turned-human had been gradually feeling sicker the more he sat in this cell. It wasn't a terribly fast process, and he didn't notice until recently, but either way it felt like he was going to die. It was hard to breath and when he did breath he couldn't help but cough sometimes.

Natsu wasn't the brightest bulb in the box, but even he knew there was something wrong.

Kyoka and a few others dropped by to check on him every now and then and they looked absolutely fine. Well, they looked completely inhuman too, so that could be why they didn't feel like garbage.

Since the cell was underground and there weren't any windows, Natsu couldn't tell if the Ember Moon was gone or not. Heck, he didn't even know if it was day or night. Time felt like a foreign concept. Something that didn't apply to him. However, he might not be able to see the Ember Moon, but he can feel its presence. The presence of the Ember Moon felt like an iron hand was clamped around him, but instead of restraining his movements it restrained his powers.

And the Ember Moon's vice grip was still strong.

All this time to kill was making him antsy. However, his body didn't reflect that jittery nerve. He had grown too exhausted from pacing around his cell looking for any weak points that he could exploit in an escape. The only place that could vie for an escape route would be the bars, however that wouldn't work right now. The bars may be rusty and old, but as he is now he's not strong enough to remove them with just his bare hands.

On top of that, Natsu's now black hair kept falling in his face and it irritated him so much that he felt like he was going to go mad. In the end, he began using Lucy's headband to hold it back. The Celestial Mage had once again kept him from losing his cool even though she thankfully wasn't with him at the moment.

One thing however was bothering Natsu. He was human right now, sure, but even as a human he shouldn't be this exhausted from just walking around a cell. The pinkette was guessing that there was something in the air of this place that was making him sick and draining his energy.

Even without his enhanced senses, Natsu could smell something he couldn't exactly place a name to in the air. The smell was kind of a mix of rusty, damp, and stale. It was upstairs when he was brought here too and Natsu guessed that the stink was all over the place.

And more than likely part of the reason why Natsu felt ill.

Another fit of coughing shook his chest. It wasn't a house-shaker like his normal coughs, but it sure hurt.

"Dang. Forget colds, whatever's goin' on down here is _way_ worse." he muttered, struggling to stand.

His legs felt rubbery, like he had just ran three consecutive marathons and it made it much more difficult to stand than normal. Somehow, he managed to stand up, but he was leaning heavily on the cold stone wall for support.

Natsu tried to walk along the wall, but his legs decided to stop supporting him and he pitched forward back to the ground like a stone. Now Natsu had hit stone ground a lot of times, but it always hurt a lot more when he was human. Something wet and warm ran down from the wound in his stomach, the sudden presence of warmth on his cold skin making him shiver.

"Dang it. It opened again." he muttered, forcing himself to sit up.

The pinkette's moves grew increasingly sluggish while he tried to stop the bleeding, but he didn't have much to work with in the first place. The cell was bare and devoid of anything useful. There weren't blankets or anything that Natsu could use to stop the bleeding besides what he had on him. In other words, he only had his clothes and Lucy's headband.

He was about to curse his own unpreparedness when a heavy set of footsteps descended from the floor above. Natsu shivered as the atmosphere turned frigid.

"You again." he growled, not letting his voice shudder from the cold.

A man wearing armor with the words "Absolute Zero" engraved on the front stood before Natsu's cell door with the same smug grin that the pinkette wanted to burn off if he could have. It still bothered Natsu that this guy looked so pain-stakingly familiar but he couldn't figure out why. And to make matters more annoying, the man refused to tell Natsu his name.

"Oh? Are you not happy to see me?" he asked pretending to be hurt.

Natsu grunted. "No."

The man's dark eyes fell on the crimson liquid that was running from Natsu's open wound. Natsu knew it would be hard to see the actual wound since he was pretty much scrunched up into a ball against the cold, but it didn't take a detective to figure out what happened.

"You hurt yourself already?" he sighed shaking his head in disapproval.

Natsu tried to fire back a smart remark, but ended up almost coughing up a kidney instead. Or that's what it felt like. The man seemed to know exactly what was going on.

"I didn't expect the anti-Ether to get to you so quickly. You really are weak in human form. An ordinary human could last much longer before being reduced to this state."

"'Anti-Ether'? The heck is that?"

The man tapped his chin. "I guess you could say it's like a deadly poison for mages and other magical beings, though in high concentrations, it's dangerous for regular humans too."

"So that's what's makin' me feel like crap?" Natsu growled, trying not to cough again.

"Probably." the man shrugged, "Though that gash in your side probably isn't helping things either. Open wounds let in more anti-Ether, so that's probably what sped the poisoning along."

Natsu scowled. He didn't exactly get what this guy was saying, but even Natsu could tell that he was in a lot of trouble. As if crazy dark mages hiring professional kidnappers to capture him and use his blood to free a powerful demon that his father apparently sealed was bad enough. Now there was poison and probably a boat-load of it was in his system right now.

Something skidded across the floor to Natsu's feet. A small glass bottle full of a strange purple liquid.

"An antidote." the man said simply, "It will cure the effects of the anti-Ether. We can't have you dying on us before we get what we want, now can we? We all know that if you die as a human, than even when your day of humanity is over, your blood will remain human. So I'd advise you drink up before it's too late."

Natsu didn't move, just stared at the bottle. He didn't really know what to do with it.

"Why isn't it affecting you?" Natsu croaked.

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

Natsu grunted. "Why isn't this 'anti-Ether' affecting you or anyone else here?"

The man looked at him in surprise for a moment. Then a cruel smirk crawled across his face and he laughed.

"Simple. It's because, we are all demons. Anti-Ether has no effect on us."

And with that the man vanished back up the stairs, once again taking the frigid atmosphere that seemingly trailed him with him. Natsu relaxed a little, silently relishing the comparative warmth for a moment before picking up the bottle the man left for him.

He doubted it was a poison because Tartarous needed him alive and despite how much Natsu wished it wasn't, what the man had said was true. It wouldn't make any sense if they killed him off before they get what they want because if he died a human, his blood remained human. They'd most likely off him after they were through with him, but definitely not before. So if this was an antidote for anti-Ether poisoning, than Natsu should keep it on him to take later before the Ember Moon ends. The effects of the anti-Ether would definitely be worse when Natsu regains his magic if it really was a deadly poison for magic beings and he could scarcely move as it is.

This antidote would be the key to him escaping, but that would depend if he survived long enough to actually attempt escape. The pinkette knew he wouldn't make it if he didn't take a little now.

He pulled the bottle's stopper out, releasing a light pop, but Natsu hesitated before putting the mouth of the bottle to his lips. He didn't know what the liquid would taste like, but he had a feeling it wouldn't be pleasant.

He was right.

The only none-curse-word he could use to describe how it tasted, was putrid. One small swing went down, the stopper went right back on again and the bottle was pocketed. But even if the antidote tasted horrible, Natsu did feel significantly better.

Standing up put the extent of the potion's effects. And thankfully, Natsu could walk now even if he still needed the support of the wall to stay standing. It was something.

The pinkette patrolled the perimeter of the cell, looking for anything that would be strong enough to get the magic sealing cuff off his wrist. Normally, Natsu could just rip the cuff off with his brute strength, but he was actually weaker than Lucy at the moment. Not that he was insulting the blonde mage, but physical strength wasn't exactly her strong suit.

Not like she needed it. Lucy was smart and compared to her, Natsu couldn't think his way out of a paper bag. She'd probably be proud of him for using his head for once, Natsu knew he was.

His searching payed off when he stumbled across a decently sized stone. The stone was jagged and had a bit of a point to the end of it.

To Natsu, this was the perfect stone to use to smash the stupid cuff off. For him to actually escape, brute strength wouldn't be enough. He'd need his magic too and if he still had this sealing cuff on, he wouldn't be able to use it when it returned after the Ember Moon.

Natsu braced his arm against the stone wall and started whacking the metal cuff as hard as he could. The sharp sound of stone hitting metal rung through the cell at a frequency that made his ears hurt even if they were just human ears. He just hoped that the members of Tartarous didn't hear it as well.

Natsu persistently smashed the stone into the cuff, gritting his teeth against the pain he was inadvertently causing himself until the cuff finally fell off his bruised wrist. The metal had been finally pounded so out of shape by Natsu's persistent blows that it came unclasped and he had done it with only his human strength and a rock of all things.

As soon as the magic sealing cuff was off, Natsu noticed that the grip of the Ember Moon was weaker than he originally suspected. It was probably late morning, early afternoon at the latest.

This came as some relief to the pinkette. His window of time to make his escape was closer than he had thought. And then if finally settled in that he had been awake all night and he was dead tired.

Natsu looked down at his wrist, feeling small pings of pain from it.

Ugly purple bruises were already forming around the circumference of his wrist from both the suddering of the cuff as he whacked it repeatedly, and the occasional stray blow.

Natsu muttered under his breath as he inspected the blemishes. "This'll heal up fast. Hopefully."

The last thing Natsu wanted Lucy to see was that he had been in deep trouble. She'd probably find some way to blame herself for it and Natsu didn't think he could stand seeing his best friend so upset over something that wasn't remotely her fault. Of course, who was he to talk? He'd been kicking himself for letting Lucy get kidnapped not once or twice, but three times since she started to travel with him.

Natsu felt responsible for her safety even though she only came because he asked her to help him get his wings. But at the rate they were going with all the interruptions they kept running into, it may take a while. Heck, he may _never_ get his wings.

But strangely, Natsu didn't mind that. If he got to go on adventures all the time with Lucy, then who cares if he got his wings or not? He didn't. He just wanted to spend time with Lucy. She was different from the other people he had met in the past seven years.

Sure, she was loud, kinda weird, a bit annoying, and not the greatest fighter he'd ever come across, but at the same time she was resourceful, compassionate, and had a burning determination and resolve that was truly something to marvel at. She freaked out a lot in the beginning, but thinking back, that's to be expected.

The world Natsu lived in was different from the world Lucy grew up in. His world was much more dangerous, harsh, and unforgiving. It still impressed him that Lucy dove into it head first without a second thought.

She had shown him time and time again that she didn't care if he wasn't completely human. Natsu enjoyed her company and frankly the thought of her leaving terrified him a hundred times more than what he was facing right now. Natsu never knew his mother, his father vanished without a trace and he had little to no social skills that he could use to make any friends.

Lisanna was the first not to be afraid of him, but he was too afraid of her to accept her friendship and that opportunity vanished as soon as it appeared. Lucy was like his second chance to have a friend and he didn't want to waste it.

Natsu was going to get out of here and find Lucy no matter what.

Lucy must be rubbing off on him. He'd never felt so determined to accomplish something before. It kind of felt like when he ate fire. Warm, almost burningly so in his stomach, spreading throughout his whole body. The chill of the Tartarous guild hall didn't bother him any more.

He had the determination to escape and something to fight for.

That was more than enough, magic or not.

...

Lucy's POV:

...

Last night was the best sleep Lucy had had in a while and thankfully, this time she went to sleep of her own free will. It was really late by the time Minerva had calmed down completely, and she offered to let Lucy stay over for the night. The offer surprised the Celestial Mage, but she gratefully accepted it since she didn't have anywhere else to stay otherwise.

Minerva and Lucy were the only ones in the house so, Lucy was surprised when she awoke the next morning to find Loke in her room with a change of clothes over his arm, staring at her as she slept.

Loke looked a bit different than when Lucy last say the Celestial Spirit. Instead of his usual parka, he wore a crisp suit and his hair had appeared to have grown out a bit. So much in fact that it looked like he had a lion's mane. However, he still kept his blue tinted glasses even though he probably didn't need them anymore.

"Lucy. How are you feeling?" the lion spirit asked.

The blonde's eyes were practically the size of saucers as she shot out of the bed like a spring loaded rocket.

"L-Loke!? What are you doing here? You should be healing!"

"And so should you. Don't think I didn't hear that you had gotten into a couple of fights after I went back to the Celestial Spirit World from Scorpio, Taurus, and Aquarius." he scolded lightly, adjusting his glasses, "I swear, I cannot leave my princess out of my sight for a single moment."

"'Princess'? Loke quit making flirty jokes. But really, are you feeling well enough to go between the Celestial Spirit World and the human world again?"

Loke nodded. "Of course. I can recover at a faster rate than most spirits since I'm primarily a combat spirit."

"Then why do you have clothes with you?"

"Virgo asked me to bring some over when she heard I was going to check up on you. She said you might need some after that last fight you won."

Admittedly, Virgo had been correct. Lucy was still wearing the same tattered clothes she was wearing when she got kidnapped by Jasper and Devon. Even before the last couple fights, they were already basically rags, but now they were so badly torn that they barely covered her.

"Thank you. I appreciate it Loke."

The lion spirit handed over the clothes, but he didn't leave the room.

"Um Loke?" Lucy sweat-dropped.

"Yes Lucy?"

"Can you..um...leave the room?"

He cocked his head in clear confusion. "Why?"

"I need to change…"

Finally it seemed he got the message and he vanished back into the Spirit World.

Now that she was alone, Lucy slipped into the outfit Loke brought. It amazed her that it actually fit her quite well, not to mention was cute. It was white-strapless top with long ruffled bell-sleeves that came over her hands and a knee-length skirt.

Apparently sensing that Lucy was finished changing, Loke appeared in her room again.

"So, Lucy, how are your wounds healing?"

"They're a lot better than they were before." Lucy said, inspecting the wound on her back in the mirror.

The wound had healed up well enough that she took the stitches that didn't pop out and it had healed up surprisingly well. She could barely even see it now, which surprised her since the wound was only a few days old, but Lucy was a fast healer so she guessed it wasn't too surprising. Her ankle was much better now too. She could walk on it without it hurting too much. And the best part, the scar in her shoulder Jasper reopened had healed well too. Except for the angry pink line connecting the jagged puncture wounds up to the base of her neck.

Lucy frowned at it. Natsu wasn't going to be too happy about that. He'd definitely find a way to blame himself for it, like how he tried to blame himself when she got the original scar when they were battling Brain and the Oracion Seis.

"That scar in your shoulder. Where did it come from?" Loke asked.

"From a fight...not too long ago actually."

"It healed up surprisingly quick given how deep it is." he noted, a tone Lucy couldn't name underlining his voice.

Lucy shrugged. "Yeah, but I've always been a fast healer."

"...Are you okay with having that scar on display for everyone to see?"

The Celestial Mage was silent for a moment.

"...Yeah. It's what's on the inside that counts, right?"

"So when are you planning on finding Natsu?" Loke asked, thankfully changing the topic, "I'm sure he's worried about you."

Lucy nodded sadly. "Yeah, but I doubt he's in Hajimari anymore. The trouble is, where would he go? I doubt he knows that I was kidnapped by Blood Eagle and that my father hired them and knowing Natsu, he'd be trying to find me on his own and knowing Levy, she'd come along and Gajeel and Lily are definitely going to follow."

"True, but he might have gone to Fairy Tail. Despite his rash behavior, Natsu is probably smarter than he lets on."

"So he's probably in Fairy Tail looking for anything on people who kidnap professionally?"

"He most likely went there, but I suspect he left by now."

Lucy frowned. Finding Natsu would be a challenge. He doesn't carry any way to communicate with him, like a lacrama or an address to send a letter to and she didn't know enough about his independent thought process to predict where he could have gone.

"If it's any correlation, I can go to Fairy Tail and inform Master Makarov that you are well and at Sabertooth and he can hopefully pass the message on to Natsu if he had seen him."

"You could do that?" Lucy asked.

Loke nodded. "I am the most powerful of the Zodiacs, if I can't no one can. Just sit tight here for now, I'll be back as soon as I have an answer."

A bright light enveloped the lion spirit and he disappeared, not even waiting for Lucy to reply. Once again the weight of her loneliness crashed down on her. She couldn't explain it, but something felt off about the way Loke was acting. He seemed tentative, edgy and analytical. It practically radiated off the lion spirit as strongly as his Celestial aura. What was wrong, Lucy wasn't sure, but she was positive there was something Loke wasn't telling her.

...

"Thank you so much for letting me stay over Minerva." Lucy grinned.

The half-god leaned against the doorframe and crossed her arms. "It's not a problem. It's the least I could do."

"I-I didn't really do much, but my offer still stands. I know with me gone all the time, Levy could use an extra set of hands in the store."

Minerva chuckled. "I'll think about it, but really I'm more of a fighter than a librarian."

The Celestial Mage laughed. "True. I hope things work out for you Minerva. Stay in touch!"

The door closed and Lucy passed through the front gate, the manor she left behind feeling much less foreboding than in it did before. But now Lucy wasn't sure what to do with her time until she heard back from Loke.

She didn't exactly feel like she was welcome at the Sabertooth guild as she was not a member and Jiemma didn't seem to like her very much. And admittedly, the idea of seeing Sting again wasn't a very pleasant one.

Lucy looked up at the sky and sighed in annoyance, but something caught her eye.

The flame orange moon was still shining brightly in the sky like a second sun.

"Huh? The moon is still out?" Lucy muttered.

"Lucy-sama?"

The Celestial Mage snapped out of her thoughts, the strange moon forgotten for the moment and looked up to see Yukino walking towards her.

"Yukino. What are you doing here?" Lucy asked.

"You didn't return last night, so I came to check on you. Did all go well?"

The blonde mage nodded. "Yeah. I feel like Minerva and I are going to be great friends."

"Then why did you stay all night?"

"Well, it got late and Minerva offered for me to stay over for the night."

The white-haired mage nodded, understanding. "I see. So, shall we return to the guild?"

Lucy blinked in surprise. "Y-Yukino, I'm not sure I'm very welcome at Sabertooth. I think I made your Master mad at me and right now Sting isn't a person I want to see."

Yukino nodded. "His attitude towards others is...undesirable at best, so I must agree with you there. But currently, Sting-sama and Rogue-sama are away on a request and will probably be away for a number of days."

Lucy was silent for a moment. "Is there any reason why you are so insistent I go to the guild hall?"

"Um...well...it's just, I have never met another person with Celestial descent. It's...nice to know I'm not alone."

Lucy's brown gaze softened. "I see now. It must be lonely being the only Celestial descendant in Sabertooth."

The white-haired Tennin nodded. "Y-You might not know a lot about our heritage, but your presence is still...reassuring. I don't know how else to describe it."

Lucy chuckled. "Well, if we both are related to Celestial beings, than we're by extension family, right?"

Yukino managed a small smile, but it quickly faded. "I don't think you want to be related to me. I bring nothing but bad luck, Lucy-sama."

"No you don't Yukino. Don't think that." Lucy took Yukino's hand, "Come on, why don't we get to know each other? It could be fun."

Lucy could see, just for a moment, that the white-haired Tennin couldn't help but smile as they walked down the street.

...

 **A/N: Gods, I am getting tired of this split POV, but I can't rush this or it'll be crap *starts tearing hair out* I want to get these two back together ASAP. Hmm...I just got an idea *rubs hands together while cackling evilly*. I might not use it yet. Might.**

 **Oh and did anyone else notice, if 1 day in the Celestial Spirit World= 3 months in the human world, than when Loke returned to the Celestial Spirit World after Lucy got his sentence overturned, that he returned within a few days to a week? I just noticed that and thought it was interesting.**

 **Plz Review! And Favorite, and Follow this story if you haven't already!**

 **See all y'ah awesome people next chapter! ;)**


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: Hello Universe! How are you all on this fine morning/afternoon/evening? Hopefully not dying from Final's preparation like I am. We've almost reached 30 chapters, once again, it's not really** _ **that**_ **big of a deal, but this story is my child and I love it so much and I'm proud that this story has gotten this long and there's still a ways to go.**

 **And I just wanted to point out one thing: This story has over 100 reviews! Once again not a big deal, but it just makes me happy :3**

 **Enjoy the latest chapter! It's going to be kinda long :)**

…

Levy's POV:

…

Sleep had never felt so rewarding and this was coming from someone who would read a book and end up staying awake until she passed out on her desk at 4 am. Levy wasn't sure how long the group had slept but by the time they woke up again, the sun was overhead, but strangely the moon was also still out.

Levy vaguely remembered seeing that same moon the night before, but she didn't really pay much attention to it with the panic of finding Anty and that she was too tired to think and she couldn't pay anything much thought even if she wanted to.

By the time Levy awoke, Erza and Gajeel were already up and Gray and Juvia were beginning to stir as well.

"Geez, is it already noon?" the ice-maker mage asked, ruffling stones and twigs from his hair.

"We did stay up until well past midnight." Levy pointed out, standing up and brushing dirt off her dress, "We should come up with an entrance plan and fast. We only have 12 hours at the most before Natsu's powers return."

Erza nodded. "Tartarous is a force to be reckoned with in the magic underworld, we must approach this situation with the utmost caution or we will all be cut down instantly."

"Weren't we just gonna storm in?" Gajeel muttered.

The redheaded mage struck the half-Iron Dragon on the head. "Of course not! Even with the power we have gathered here, that would be suicide at best! We need a plan of some kind. Levy, do you have a plan?"

Levy jumped in shock. "M-Me? Why would I have a plan?"

"Levy-chan. You are the smartest out of all of us." Juvia pointed out.

"W-Well, the best choice for an entrance would be to find some kind of back door. Some entry point that isn't terribly well guarded and get in through that."

"And from there?" Gray asked.

Levy tapped her chin thoughtfully, running scenarios in her head.

"Hmm. Well, that's a hard one. Splitting up would cover more ground and make it easier to sneak around, but if we ran into trouble it would be hard for us to face it alone. Staying together though, it would take us longer to find Natsu and we could be spotted right out of the gates."

"Then how about we go in two groups of three?" Lily offered, "Levy, Juvia and Gajeel, and Erza, Gray and I. We have some communication lacramas, right?"

Juvia nodded, holding up her bag. "We have exactly two lacramas."

"That's perfect Once we're inside we can use the lacramas to communicate with each other so that if one group finds Natsu they won't be aimlessly searching for the other group while that group is still searching for Natsu." Levy explained.

Gajeel chuckled. "Sounds like a solid plan to me."

"Than what are we waiting for?" Gray asked, "We're burning daylight."

...

"It smells worse in here than it did outside." Gajeel muttered.

Levy nodded, covering her nose. "It's making me sick just breathing it and why is it so cold?"

"I don't know what you're talking about Levy. It feels fine to me." Gray said, as if making his point, not wearing a shirt.

"Gray-sama, your cloths." Juvia pointed out.

The ice-maker mage swore while scrambling to find his missing shirt as the rest of the team stood in the entrance.

The two groups stood in the back entrance of Tartarous. They actually were lucky enough to find an entrance that wasn't guarded or booby trapped at all. Tartarous must be confident that no one could find them to let their guard slip like that. Unfortunately, on the way in they found a mangled body that Gajeel confirmed to be the other mage that kidnapped Natsu.

But Levy figured out quickly that Tartarous had a good reason to be confident. The hallways were clouded with a strange energy that, according to Gajeel, was identical to what clung to Anty when the found her.

Erza looked around the branching hallways, hummed and summoned what looked like face-guard gasmasks and handed one to each of them.

"The air is obviously poisonous. We should avoid breathing it in directly at all costs."

"And Natsu's in here?" Lily asked looking around, "It must be pretty bad for him since he doesn't have any way to filter out this poison."

"Juvia hope he's alive." the water mage muttered, "Juvia is not sure how anything can live in this miasma."

"I'm sure Natsu's alive." Gajeel reassured, slipping the mask over his mouth and nose, "Tartarous won't kill him until he isn't any use to 'em. I bet they've givin' him an antidote or somethin' to ease the effects. 'Sides, flame brain's too stubborn to die just yet."

Gray nodded, securing his own mask. "In any case, we should hurry. Levy, you, Juvia and Gajeel will search the right side of the building while Erza, Lily and I search the left."

"Contact us as soon as you find anything." Erza ordered.

Levy nodded. "You too Erza. Stay safe."

With those parting words, the group of four split up. Levy was thankful that Erza provided gasmasks for them because the deeper they went, the thicker the miasma became. It got so thick that Levy could almost see the wispy tendrils of purple-brown mist.

"Dam. I wish there wasn't so much poison here." Gajeel grumbled, "I could find the pink-haired idiot in a snap if I could pick up his scent."

"It's okay Gajeel. We can find him without your sense of smell. We just need to think logically."

"Do you have any ideas Levy-san?" Juvia asked.

Levy nodded. "Logically, if they were keeping Natsu prisoner here, then they would put him in the dungeon."

The half-Iron Dragon was probably smiling behind his mask. "Then all we've gotta do is find a set'a stairs that go down."

Levy nodded, and pointed towards the wall. " **Solid Script: Markings!** "

A small symbol appeared on the wall and as the pair walked, more appeared along the wall.

"Let's not get lost in here." Levy chuckled.

"Nice one Shrimp."

"Do you have any spells that could track Natsu-san?" The water mage inquired.

Levy hummed. "Hmm. Let me think...maybe, **Solid Script: Tracker**!"

The word 'tracker' appeared and settled on the ground in front of Levy. Strangely, the word acted like a dog and wagged the arch of the 'r' like a tail while the end of the 't' was turned up towards Levy, waiting for an order.

"Search for the smell of burning cinnamon."

The tracker spell nodded and started down the hallway, leaving Gajeel and Levy to follow.

"'Smell of burning cinnamon'?" Juvia blinked.

"Why not just tell it ta look for Natsu?" Gajeel demanded

"Because this spell works like your sense of smell. It needs a certain smell to search for. If I just told it 'search for Natsu' it wouldn't know what to find." Levy explained, "And you did tell me that Natsu smelled like burning cinnamon."

Gajeel scoffed lightly. "I'll never get that god-awful smell outta my nose."

They followed the tracker for a while and Levy began to notice something strange.

"Hey Gajeel, Juvia, have you noticed we haven't seen a single guard since we came here?"

"Juvia does think it is strange."

The half-Iron Dragon nodded, not taking his eyes off the hallway ahead. "I'm not hearin' much either. It's like this place is completely deserted. Still, that doesn't mean we should let our guard down."

The petite mage nodded. "There still will have to be someone here, but I wouldn't be surprised if they're in the higher levels."

"Works for us."

Suddenly the tracker stopped, pointed to a door and began to make a sound. But it was cut off as it disappeared in a small puff of pink smoke. Levy looked at the spot where her tracker spell had been, surprise written on her face.

"Hey Shrimp, was it supposed to do that?" Gajeel asked, equally surprised.

The bluenette shook her head. "No. Something cancelled out my spell."

Juvia's eyes widened. "If that happened to your tracker, then after all this time do you think your markers are still there Levy-chan?"

Levy's heart dropped. "I doubt it. Wait! If this miasma effects magic, then is the lacrama still intact!?"

Gajeel whipped the lacrama bag off his shoulder and reached inside. And he pulled out a completely intact communication lacrama.

Levy breathed a sigh of relief. "At least we still have the lacrama for now. Let's contact Erza, Gray and Lily. They need to know that spells don't last very long in here."

"Juvia thinks we should find a place to hide first. In case an enemy comes." Juvia pointed out.

Gajeel looked at the door and smiled. "How 'bout the room yer little pooch was pointin' to, Shrimp?"

"Good idea."

Levy grabbed the door's handle and pulled, but it was locked. She frowned in frustration and tried pushing instead but got the same result.

"Lemme try Shrimp."

Gajeel gently nudged Levy out of the way of the door and turned his pinky finger into iron that shaped into a lock pick and inserted it into the keyhole under the door's handle. A few seconds later, the lock clicked and Gajeel opened the door.

"Wow. I didn't know you could pick locks Gajeel."

"What? Did the two of y'ah think I just bust down every locked door I come across or somethin'?" he said, letting his finger turn back to normal and walking into the room.

Levy and Juvia swapped a look and giggled and followed. "Kinda."

The Solid Script mage closed the door behind them after she and Juvia were safely inside. Juvia went to help Gajeel set up the communication lacrama, leaving Levy to start looking around the room. Her tracker spell had found Natsu's scent here. Obviously the half-Fire Dragon wasn't present in this room, but something of his was and Levy was sure he'd want it back.

The room was a decent size, somewhat spacey even and was lined with shelves from wall to wall and floor to ceiling. To Levy, it looked like a storage room of some sort. There were a bunch of seemingly random objects lined up neatly on the shelves. Old weapons, clothing, armor, stones, tableware, books, and even a few preserved miscellaneous body parts.

Eventually, on one of the shelves tucked off to the side, Levy found something that she would recognize anywhere. A white, scale patterned scarf.

"Natsu's scarf." Levy muttered, picking up the folded length of fabric.

"Y'ah find somethin' Shrimp?" Gajeel asked.

"I found Natsu's scarf."

The half-Iron Dragon looked up from his work as Levy held out the folded scarf. His red eyes regarded it with a mix of emotions that flashed by so fast Levy couldn't decode them all in time. But from what she did see, he wasn't too happy.

"Why would they've taken that?" he muttered.

Levy shrugged. "I'm not sure, but from the looks of this place, this is a trophy room."

"That ain't good. We should hurry this up then."

In a few more minutes, Gajeel had the lacrama running and Erza, Gray and Lily's faces appeared in the crystal.

" _What is it Gajeel? Have you, Juvia and Levy found Natsu already?_ " Gray asked.

"No. We found his scarf, but not him yet." Levy informed.

"We called y'ah to warn y'ah that magic doesn't work too well in here. Spells ain't gonna last as long as they normally do." Gajeel said.

Erza nodded at them. " _I see. Thank you for the heads up. Good luck finding Natsu. We'll call you if we find anything_."

The lacrama went dark and Gajeel picked it up and put it back in the bag.

"Hang on ta that scarf Shrimp. I'm sure flame brain wants it back."

Levy nodded and put it in her own bag for safe keeping. Gajeel cautiously opened the door to the trophy room, looked both ways and motioned for Levy to follow him out. Levy shivered a little bit. It was cold and the uneasy atmosphere that clung to this place didn't help to make it comforting. Levy was glad that Gajeel and Juvia were with her. She'd be scared if she was alone in this place.

The ground suddenly trembled and all three of them froze.

"Gajeel, Juvia, did you feel that?" she whispered.

He nodded, slowly taking hold of Levy's hand. "Stay close ta me Levy."

"J-Juvia was stay close as well."

Levy's eyes widened a little. He only called her by her actual name when he was serious. As scary as that was, she didn't mind that Gajeel was holding her hand. It made her feel safer, and even though he had a heart of iron sometimes, he was really a warm person and the simple gesture of holding her hand reassured her that there was warmth in the cold place.

The ground suddenly trembled again, this time stronger. Then again and again. Until as if pulled by invisible strings, Levy and Gajeel were ripped apart and pulled in opposite directions while Juvia was thrown off in a different direction entirely and into darkness.

...

Cold. That was the first thing that registered in Levy's mind. She was cold. The warmth from Gajeel's hand had long since cooled. When, she wasn't sure. Her eyes opened to a new place. It was similar to where she was before the ground began to tremble, but Levy knew it wasn't the same place.

She got up, but something slid off her face and clattered sharply on the masoned stone floor. Her hand shot around the gasmask and she held her breath as she picked it up. Turning the metal mask over in her hands, Levy inspected it for cracks and thankfully found none as she slipped it over her face.

" _Welcome humans to Tartarous_." a voice declared, echoing around the room, " _How and why you're here is quite curious to Mard Geer. But, Mard Geer could care less about that. You made your final mistake, humans by coming to this place. Now you all will perish here in despair._ "

The voice went silent and Levy immediately got to her feet. Their cover had been blown and now they had even less time to find Natsu and get out of here. But it was going to be hard to coordinate if Levy found Natsu first. Gajeel had the lacrama and he was...somewhere. The petite mage was all alone in a hostile environment. Maybe they should have called for backup when they found out the enemy was Tartarous? Levy should have known they couldn't take on one of the Balam Alliance with just six of them.

Levy shook her head. She needed to stop despairing. That's what they want her to do. Right now, first priority was finding Natsu, then meeting up with everyone else, and finally getting the heck out of here and not looking back.

Gradually, the mind-numbing fear that gripped Levy lost its grip. Then there was an incoherent sound. Like a footstep and a something heavy dragging behind it. Levy ducked behind a nearby pillar and pressed herself against the wall. The sound came into the room...then passed where Levy was. But Levy was surprised to see who it was that had run by.

It wasn't a guard or anything like Levy had feared it was.

It was Anty.

She was limping heavily on a tree branch that she was using as both a cane and an oar, her broken leg dragging along the floor. The dark mage was obviously in pain, but she still pushed on anyway. Every now and again she would cough harshly, wobble, but continue.

Levy came out of her hiding place.

"Anty? Oh my gosh, what are you thinking? You're not fit enough to fight!" Levy scolded grabbing the girl's shoulder.

Anty whipped around and lashed with a dagger she had grasped against the branch. Levy just barely managed to dodge.

"Woah! Easy with that!"

"DIE TARTAROUS! DIE!"

" **Solid Script: Shield**!"

A shield appeared between Levy and the crazed mage. But just as quickly as Anty began attacking Levy, she stopped, turned the other way and limped off past an archway. Under that arch, Levy could see a set of stairs leading down to what Levy was assuming was a dungeon. Either she had gotten extremely lucky, or Tartarous wanted her here. Either way, it was a lead. However. Levy dropped her Shield and looked at Anty, who was limping down the hall on her broken leg armed with nothing but a dagger, a broken mind and a frightening determination to kill anyone bearing the mark of Tartarous. The Solid Script mage's eyes glanced at Anty. She felt compelled to take the broken mage with her. She was walking into her death the way she was. But Levy strongly doubted that Anty would let the bluenette get anywhere close to her without getting a healthy cut from that dagger she was packing around.

Still, that wasn't going to stop her from trying.

Levy ran up to Anty and grabbed her arm. As she expected, she whipped around and tried to bury the blade of the dagger in Levy's face. However, the dark mage's moves were sloppy and easy to block, even for someone with no hand-to-hand skills like Levy. The Solid Script mage wrenched the dagger out of Anty's hand and sent it skidding across the floor behind her.

"LET ME GO! I HAVE TO KILL THEM ALL! I WILL KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF THESE DEMONS FOR WHAT THEY DID TO DEWI!"

Levy pulled Anty into a hug, the dark mage thrashed wildly in an attempt to escape Levy's grasp, but failed, eventually giving into it and both mages sunk to the floor. Anty finally broke down, and Levy tried her best to comfort her.

"Anty, I know you're angry. But if you try to go through with this, you'll just get yourself killed. Is that something Dewi would want?"

The dark mage continued to sob, but Levy felt her shake her head against the petite mage's shoulder.

"She'd want me to live on." Anty croaked, her voice breaking with sobs, "But how can I? She was my only friend! Now that she's gone, I don't have anyone! I have to get revenge for her! An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life! That's what we were taught in Blood Eagle!"

Levy frowned. "You realize you can't face these people like this, right? Please tell me you do."

"I can't live with myself." Anty sobbed, "I'm alive and Dewi isn't! How can I live when my best friend is dead!?"

"Anty, it isn't going to be easy, but if you die here, who's going to carry on Dewi's memory?"

The dark mage continued sobbing into Levy's shoulder, but Levy pulled away so she could look Anty right in the eye.

"You're the only one that can carry on Dewi's memory, Anty. Do your friend one final favor, and live."

Anty sniffed and wiped away the tears. Her eyes were still broken, but they were more in focus then they were the previous night. At least Levy was helping her a little bit to get over her trauma.

"You're here to rescue that half-dragon, right?" Anty asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah. Why did Tartarous hire Blood Eagle to capture him in the first place?" Levy asked.

Anty swallowed nervously, as if worried someone was listening and dropped her voice to a whisper.

"They have this book. It isn't an ordinary book. It's a magic book that a dragon used to seal away the master of Tartarous, E.N.D.. Tartarous wants the half-dragon because the dragon that sealed E.N.D. away was-"

An explosion rocked the room. When the boom faded and the dust cleared, a man was standing on the far side of the room. At first glance, he looked human, but if you looked closer, you could see the fuzzy yellow tail swishing behind him and the pointed ears flicking on his head. The man's face twisted into a wicked smile.

"Found you, humans."

He lunged at Levy and Anty with incredible speed, but Levy's reaction was just as quick.

" **Solid Script: Force**!"

The word 'force' appeared and the man was pushed back by an invisible blow and thrown into a wall. Not wanting to waste a single moment, Levy got up and sprinted for the dagger. Her thin fingers curled around the dagger's worn grip and she immediately returned to Anty's side.

Just in time for the enemy to get back up again.

"Heh. This'll be more fun than I thought." he cackled, "But you should have thought twice before invading the mighty Tartarous guild! NOW I'M GOING TO BLOW YOU TO PIECES!"

He ran towards them again, but Levy did something she never thought she'd do. She held out the dagger, and the man ran right into the blade, effectively impaling himself. Levy's eyes widened in surprise as she saw that someone was holding her wrist. Her eyes traced the arm back to Anty. The dark mage had death in her eyes and a blank expression that was downright frightening.

She had grabbed Levy's wrist at the last moment and held up her arm so the man ran into the dagger's blade. A cruel move, but Levy should expect that from someone who lived in the magic underworld, where it was kill or be killed.

"Die, you animal." she growled.

The man's eyes were wide with surprise, but the surprise faded into a vicious smirk when the blade of the dagger began to glow with a harsh yellow light. Before Levy could do anything, the dagger in her hand exploded.

The force of the explosion threw her and Anty back against the wall with harsh force. Levy's ears were ringing and her head was pounding. She couldn't see or think straight and the world seemed to move like it was in slow motion.

Then there was a laugh. "You think a puny dagger like that can kill me? The great Jackal? Everything that touches me becomes a bomb!"

Anty growled. "I hate this guy. I hate him, I hate him, I wish he were dead."

Jackal chuckled at the broken mage. "You? Aren't you already dead? Mard Geer tore you and your pitiful companion to shreds. Whatever though, but judging from how well you can move, you're making good use of that antidote we generously gave to you."

"'Antidote'?" Levy echoed.

"For the anti-Ethernano." Jackal laughed, "It's deadly to humans in this high of a concentration. Especially to beings with magic in them."

"Like wizards and half breeds." Anty muttered.

Levy gasped silently. Maybe it was a really good thing that Natsu didn't have a trace of magic in his body at the moment. He wouldn't last very long in this miasma, stubborn or not. Levy didn't know how long it's been, but she didn't like the idea of wasting time. When Natsu's powers return to him, he'll be in a lot of pain if he breathes in too much of the miasma of anti-Ether.

"Wait a minute. How come the anti-Ether isn't affecting you?" Levy questioned, suddenly seeing the connection.

"Because the members of Tartarous aren't human or magical. We are demons."

A clawed hand slashed at Levy's gas mask, effortlessly tearing it off and sending skidding across the floor where it later exploded into thousands of tiny metal shards.

"And you are going to die here! Whether it's from the anti-Ether or from me, you will die!"

Levy cupped one hand over her mouth and nose and extended the index finger of her other hand.

" **Solid Script: Wind**!"

Strong, continuous gusts of wind filled the corridor. Jackal was tossed once again down the hallway, followed by the cloud of miasma. Levy grabbed Anty's hand and guided her towards the stairwell. Hopefully, they could grab Natsu and get out of there. Levy cast another **Wind** into the stairwell to clear the miasma as they descended and eventually they made it down to what Levy immediately recognized as a dungeon.

Most of the cells were vacant, except for one. Leaning against the far wall was the slumped form of a man with jet black hair that was held back by a sakura pink headband.

"Is that…?" Levy asked.

Anty nodded. "That's him."

Levy ran over to the cell and peered through the bars. Natsu had his eyes closed and from here, she couldn't see if he was breathing or not. Panicking slightly, Levy pointed at the lock. Honestly, she couldn't believe she hadn't thought of this sooner.

" **Solid Script: Open**!"

The tiny word flashed for a moment and the door unlocked. Anty pulled the door open and Levy quickly darted inside and with some effort, dragged the unconscious half-dragon out. At that moment, her **Wind** died and the miasma began to close in again.

Levy rooted through her bag and pulled out some bandanas. They belonged to Gajeel and why they were in _her_ bag of all places was beyond her, but she was thankful to have something to function as a gas mask even if it was just temporary. The thick fabric would do some good in filtering out the harmful miasma. The Solid Script mage tossed one to Anty and proceeded to secure one over Natsu's face and then her own.

Levy held her breath, watching carefully to see if Natsu was breathing. Thankfully, the half-dragon's chest rose and fell slightly, which brought her some relief.

"He's alive."

Anty knelt down next to him. "Good. Hey, what's your name anyway?"

"I'm Levy. Levy McGarden."

Anty grunted. "I'm not usually one to say things like this, but thanks Levy. You really helped me."

"Not a problem. I couldn't leave you like that. How's your leg?"

Anty shrugged. "It'll be fine. I've had worse. Just worry about the half breed. I doubt your **Wind** spell upstairs is still going and now we have another person to drag around until he wakes up."

Levy winced, remembering the demon that she blew away.

"Right. Can you handle walking on your own, Anty?"

"Sure I can. You underestimate me Levy."

Levy chuckled a little. "Sorry. It's just I figured that leg of yours hurts."

Anty shrugged and pulled herself up, leaning against the cell door with her weight shifted on her good leg.

"Just focus on getting the half breed up. I can deal with my own problems."

Levy scowled behind her mask. "Anty, _don't_ call Natsu a half breed. It isn't his fault he is this way."

Anty's expression faltered for a moment. "Right."

Levy turned her attention back to Natsu and started shaking him. "Natsu, get up! Come on wake up! Lucy's waiting Natsu!"

The last one actually worked, much to Levy's surprise and relief. Natsu's eyes snapped open and he sat up. At first he seemed a little confused, but after a couple seconds he finally noticed Levy was sitting next to him.

"Huh? Levy? What are you doing here?" he asked.

Natsu noticed the bandana tied over his nose and mouth. "What's this?"

"One of Gajeel's bandanas. We needed gas masks to protect ourselves from the anti-Ether." Levy explained, helping the black-haired pinkette to his feet.

"Okay, but why are you here? Shouldn't you and iron man be lookin' for Lucy?"

Levy frowned a little. "We changed plans. Gajeel had a suspicion that you needed help more than Lu-chan so we went to Fairy Tail and got some back up."

"If Gajeel's here with you, where is he?"

"...We got separated. Tartarous knows we're here, infact Anty and I ran into one of them. We stalled him, but he should be coming back any moment now."

Natsu's eyes darted over to Anty and narrowed. The dark mage regarded him warily, avoiding eye contact and leaning away slightly.

"Aren't you supposed to be dead?"

Anty flinched. "I survived, barely. Dewi wasn't so lucky."

The half-dragon-turned-human recoiled in surprise. Levy wasn't sure what was going through his head right now because it was Natsu and this was one of the people that got him in this situation in the first place.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

Anty turned away. "W-We should get going now. Jackal's probably almost back by now."

Levy nodded. "Can you walk Natsu?"

He stood up, shakily, but he stood on his own. "Yeah. Hey Levy what time is it?"

"Um, let me think." Levy hummed, "I'm not certain, but I think it's about two in the afternoon. You're asking because it's your day of humanity, right?"

Natsu grunted. "I just want this day to be over."

"Oh! Before I forget!" Levy drove her hand into her bag and pulled out Natsu's scarf and handed it to him, "Here. I thought you might want it back."

The black haired pinkette's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. "Sweet! My scarf! Thanks Levy!" he grinned, quickly winding the scarf around his neck.

Levy and Anty started climbing the stairs, Natsu following closely behind. He was a bit wobbly, but amazingly he was walking consistently on his own. Occasionally he'd stumble slightly and curse about being stuck as a human but continue anyway.

"I know you hate your day of humanity, but when you think about it, your day of humanity couldn't have come at a better time. You would be in a lot of pain right now if you were still a half-dragon. Speaking of which. What did Tartarous want with you anyway?" Levy asked.

"They wanted my blood because of somethin' my old man did." Natsu explained, "Well, old dragon, but you get the picture."

"What was it?"

"They needed my blood t-"

They had reached the top of the stairs, but Natsu was interrupted by a harsh explosion. The explosion didn't knock them back, but it certainly surprised the trio as the wind suddenly stirred. Unfortunately, the force of the explosion knocked the air out of all of them and the wind picked up their gas masks, allowing them to accidentally inhale an unhealthy amount of anti-Ether.

Levy felt the effects immediately and it sent her straight to her knees, coughing heavily. The energy in the Solid Script Mage's body felt like it was being drained of any and all energy at an alarming rate, even if she had only breathed in a little of the deadly miasma. The drain was agonizingly painful, like someone was driving a knife into her body repeatedly and each stab drained her more and more.

"Levy!"

The voices of her friends called her, but they sounded farther away than they should be. Levy felt weak and tired, but suddenly a truly disgusting taste forced its way down her throat. Immediately, Levy snapped back into reality, the world no longer feeling far away. But the only thing she could think about was the god awful taste in her mouth that made her want to throw up.

"Levy! Can you hear me?"

The voice registered in Levy's mind. "A...Anty?"

Levy stood up and looked around. Jackal was standing on the far side of the room, watching with an animalistic amusement that nearly made Levy shiver. Natsu was glaring down the demon dog with an intensity that could ignite a flame, and Anty had an arm wrapped around Levy's shoulders with an empty glass bottle in her hand.

"Levy? Are you okay?" Anty asked.

The bluenette nodded. "Thank you."

"Just returning a favor." the dark mage shrugged, "Now let's pound this guy."

Anty reached into the pocket of her leather jacket and pulled out what looked like a toy hammer from one of her pockets. It glowed an acidic shade of green and grew to a huge size.

"I thought you didn't have your hammer!" Levy exclaimed.

Anty smirked a little. "For Holder Mages, there's one rule: Always have a backup. Now get the half-dragon outta here. I'll deal with the dog."

Jackal cackled. " _You_ , a weak human, deal with _me_? You're a fool."

Anty pointed her hammer at the demon. "No. You're the fool. Humans are stronger than you give us credit for."

Jackal's hands glowed yellow, creating jagged shadows across his face. "Let's test that. This should be fun."

The demon lunged at Anty, who readied her hammer. Levy pointed at the space between them and shouted a spell.

" **Solid Script: Thunder**!"

Bolts of lighting arched from the word that materialized between Jackal and Anty. The lightning missed Anty by miles, but struck Jackal with a vengeance. Once again, the demon was sent spiralling to the other end of the room by petite mage's magic.

The bluenette would have celebrated if the toll her power was taking on her didn't hit her. Levy stumbled briefly, holding her pounding head before regaining her composure.

Without a second thought, Levy started pulling Anty down the hall, careful to keep a pace that Anty could manage with a cane. Natsu followed after them, but regarded Levy with some level of concern.

"Levy, is something wrong?" the half-dragon asked.

The bluenette grunted softly. "My magic takes a bigger toll on me faster in this miasma. It takes more magic power to cast spells with the anti-Ether canceling them out."

"Why'd y'ah do that anyway Levy? I had him!" Anty protested, clearly upset Levy had interrupted her fight.

"That man's power turns anything that touches him into a bomb. Your hammer won't be very effective against him."

"I was gonna shrink 'im and step on 'im. I don't think he's immune to that."

"Still, we didn't come here to fight. Let's get the others and go."

"But where are the others?" Natsu asked, "Even if I had my dragon senses, I doubt I could find them in this stuff. How do you plan to find 'em?"

Levy smiled a little under her mask. "They're Fairy Tail mages. And I'm sure even you know what that guild is famous for, Natsu."

 _KA-BOOM!_

 _CRASH!_

 _CLANG!_

Levy laughed. "They're well known for making a ruckus."

The trio rounded the corner and almost ran head-long into the Titania of Fairy Tail, Fairy Tail's local ice wizard, and Gajeel's trusted companion. They were fighting against what looked like a female demon with strange headdress-like horns and a wicked look in her eyes. Erza looked like she was having a bit of trouble with her and Lily was doing his best to assist the Re-quip mage in his battle form while Gray was backing them both up with ice attacks.

But Levy could see that all of them were getting tired. Erza had a furious look in her eyes and a wicked looking katana in her hand, but her gasmask had a huge crack in it and despite her best efforts, it was obvious that the Titania was barely hanging on and Lily wasn't doing too hot either. The tip of the ebony cat's sword was dipping towards the ground and he was breathing heavily. Gray looked the worst off. He had multiple cuts on his bare chest and his gas mask must have been destroyed at some point because an ice gas mask was covering his face instead.

Natsu growled as soon as he saw the demon Erza, Gray and Lily were fighting and shouted: "KYOKA!"

The single word rang through the halls, grabbing the attention of the fighters. The demon woman was momentarily distracted by Natsu's sudden shout, giving Erza and Lily an opening to attack her. A strong blow to the back of her head sent Kyoka crumpling to the stone floor.

Lily finally couldn't hold his battle form any longer and poofed back into his usual size, his sword clattering to the ground, also in its smaller state.

Erza looked over at the trio. "Levy. I see you found Natsu." Her eyes traveled to Anty, who was staring at her stiffly, "And Anty. That's good. Where's Gajeel?"

"And Juvia?" Gray added

"We got separated. Have you seen them anywhere?" Levy asked, unable to disguise her concern.

"Unfortunately, we haven't." Lily reported, "But I don't think you should worry too much Miss Levy. Gajeel is capable of taking care of himself until we find him, and Juvia is just as strong."

Erza suddenly coughed and sank to one of her knees, leaning heavily on the blade of her katana as it easily impaled the stone.

"Erza!" Natsu shouted.

In a flash, the half-dragon was next to her and taking off his makeshift gas mask and tying it over Erza's cracked one. The redhead's eyes widened in surprise, as did Levy's.

"Natsu! What are you doing? Breathing in this miasma is dangerous!" Levy scolded.

The black haired pinkette coughed a little, but still stood."Erza needs it more than me right now."

Before anyone else could say or do anything, an explosion threw them all across the room with an assortment of loose rubble. The impact knocked the wind out of Levy and when she tried to get up, she felt her body go limp against her will.

An eerie laugh bounced off the stone walls, drawing closer. Natsu and Anty were the only ones on their feet. Levy suspected Anty was still up because she had taken an antidote, but what was keeping Natsu from keeling over was mostly a mystery to the bluenette. But despite that they still looked a little weathered.

Multiple sets of footsteps drew closer. Levy knew one pair belonged to Jackal, but she suspected there were many more demons behind him that she couldn't see.

"You think you can just walk out of here, half breed?" Jackal cackled, "We haven't gotten what we wanted from you yet."

"It would be wise to surrender quietly before things get ugly." another voice agreed.

Levy couldn't see Natsu's fasal expression from where she was, but she could tell that he was angry.

"No way in Hell am I surrenderin' so you can just forget about it." he stated defiantly.

"It looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way." a female voice sighed, sounding slightly bored.

An insane laugh echoed around the room. "How much do you think three human souls and a half-dragon soul is worth? How much? How much?"

"It doesn't matter since they all will die soon." an unimpressed voice huffed.

"Who do you think we should start with? The incompetent human girl? The ice mage? The cat? The redhead? Or how about the Word mage that kept sending you flying, Jackal?"

"Shut up!" Jackal shouted.

"They all cut the same to me."

"Seilah, if you wouldn't mind." an eery voice ordered.

Levy wasn't sure what they were talking about until a cold feeling crept up her body and her arm moved on its own until her own hands were clasped tightly around her throat, slowly suffocating her.

A small gasp of surprise escaped Levy's lips. Her eyes darted around from person to person, but she found the same thing with each. Everyone of them was unwillingly choking themselves.

Fighting against the cold, invisible grip on her body was quickly proven futile. The more Levy fought, the tighter the grip got until she was starting to see spots and her head was spinning from the lack of oxygen reaching her brain. She could feel herself starting to black out.

 _Is this really it? Are we really going to die here?_

"Iron Dragon's Roar!"

"Water Jigsaw!"

A funnel of iron shards and water shot over Levy's head like a deadly ray. The cold grip on her body vanished and her hands immediately dropped away from her neck as she and everyone else gratefully took in deep gulps of precious air.

"Leave Gray-sama and his friends alone!"

"Tch. I can't leave y'ah alone for a minute Shrimp." a gruff voice jeered.

Levy forced a smile and struggled to prop herself up on her elbows. "Gajeel! Juvia!"

The half-Iron Dragon and the water mage were standing tall above the group on the crest of a small pile of rubble not too far down the hall, no doubt left over from Erza, Gray and Lily's fight. Despite how far away he was, Levy could clearly see Gajeel's blood red eyes darting from face to face like a pair of glowing red search lights, until they landed on Natsu.

"Sa-Natsu?" he snorted, jumping down from the pile and landing with a hearty thud before strolling over to Levy, "Y'ah look ridiculous. Is that y'er human form?"

"That is Natsu-san?" Juvia asked, following in suit, "Didn't Gajeel-san say his hair was pink?"

"Shut up y'ah scrap metal reject!" he shouted, ignoring Juvia.

Gajeel laughed. "Is that a challenge Salamander?"

"I thought I told you not to call me that!" Natsu fumed.

"This game is tiring." one of the demons, a demon with a lion-like face, declared, stepping forward, "I will end this here."

One of the other demons, a demon with four arms, chuckled. "Have at it Tempester."

Levy tensed. The power radiating from the lion-faced demon, Tempester, was beyond comprehension. Even if Levy managed to get a **Guard** up fast enough, whatever Tempester did would shatter it instantly.

" **Inferno**."

Sickly purple flames roared to life before the group. Gajeel put himself between Levy and the deadly flames while Juvia ran over to Gray and all of them braced for the end. Except a certain humanized half-Fire Dragon.

...

 **A/N: Sorry to end it here, there's another part coming soon because this chapter was getting freakishly long. I'll post the second part by tomorrow.**

 **See y'ah next chapter!**


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: And I'm back. Here's the other half!**

...

Natsu's POV:

…

This was just plain insulting to Natsu. Those jerks had the nerve to use his own element against him and his friends! And the way they all were, even with Gajeel and Juvia here, they wouldn't be able to defend themselves against the rolling wall of purple fire. Behind him, his friends had braced themselves to be incinerated, but Natsu was still standing firmly in the front.

Despite appearances, he wasn't just being his usual stubborn self, he was reaching inside his origin for any scrap of his supernatural power that he could grasp.

The grip of the Ember Moon had weakened significantly since what he assumed was that morning, enough to allow Natsu to begin to feel small traces of his magic. They were tiny and not that powerful, but he needed just a little power. Grabbing hold of one was his top priority and he had to do it fast. Small sparks of magic strived to ignite within him, but the iron hold of the Ember Moon smothered the flame before it roared to life.

Natsu reached for the power within him.

Tempester's flames were closing in. They were close enough that Natsu could feel the heat on his face.

Desperate, he reached even farther for the magic. This time, he got closer and the fire within him sparked even more fiercely.

Reaching just a little farther, Natsu grabbed hold of a signal spark, but it was firmly stuck by the power of the Ember Moon and refused to ignite into the fire he needed.

 _Come on! I need my magic right now! I won't let my friends die trying to save my sorry can!_

With a final pull, the spark came loose. A rush of heat shot through Natsu's body, someone gasped behind him.

"His hair's turned pink!" a voice, probably Juvia exclaimed.

"We aren't going down yet!" Natsu declared.

Tempester's fire was enveloped him. But he barely felt the heat. A victorious smirk spread across his face. He inhaled and the flames slid down Natsu's throat. They tasted horrible though. It was like drinking a cocktail of gasoline, rust, and really old, moldy wood, but Natsu choked it down regardless until every ember of Tempester's Hell Fire was gone.

The pinkette felt his friends' surprised gazes burning into his back and he couldn't help but smile even wider. The members of Tartarous looked just as surprised.

"He overcame his day of humanity, just with pure willpower?" the fish-like demon, Natsu identified as Torafuzar said.

"Is he stupid?" Jackal cackled, "Tempester's Hell Fire is made of pure anti-Ether! He'll die for sure now!"

Natsu laughed breathily. "Hate ta break it to y'ah. But I've got better things to do than die."

Heat whirled around Natsu as a familiar feeling filled him. He looked down at his arms, and just as he suspected, they were covered in scales. But they weren't their usual ruby red. They were a dull orange and slowly fading every second. His grip on what little power he wrestled out of the Ember Moon's clutches was slipping.

He didn't have a lot of time to do this. Quickly, he gathered as much of Tempester's Hell Fire and what little of his own as he could.

"What're you doing Natsu?" Erza demanded behind him.

He didn't answer. He was too busy concentrating (for once in his life), but if he could answer he'd probably would tell the redhead he was probably doing something stupid.

" **Fire Dragon's Special Technique** …"

"What the heck is he doing!?" Gajeel shouted, "Is he seriously gonna try to cast a spell on his day of humanity! You idiot! You'll kill yourself!"

The demons of Tartarous looked uneasy, like they were considering retreating as the power began to build around Natsu. Whatever they decided however, was too little too late.

"... **Gehanna Horizon**!"

Flames sparked to life as Natsu swung his arms, waves of purple and orange fire rolling off them and spinning into deadly whirlpools of heat. The attack his the demons hard and swept them all off their feet before throwing them down the hallway in the flaming vortex. No sooner did that happen, and Natsu ran out of power. His hold on that one ounce of power had slipped, the grip of the Ember Moon finally taking over once again and sealing Natsu off from his magic.

But that didn't stop the horrible burning sensation that had ignited in his stomach. Whatever energy he had left in his weary body was being agonisingly drained out of him. His legs were first to stop working and Natsu dropped to the ground like a stone. Voices were shouting at him from all directions, but he couldn't make out who they belonged to or what they were saying.

All he could hear was the call of silence that drew him into darkness.

...

…

Heavy silence hung around Natsu like a thick blanket. It was unbearably familiar and Natsu hated it. The light that swarmed his vision upon opening his eyes was blinding, not to mention annoying. Natsu groaned a little in annoyance and tried to sit up, only to find his body was too sore to make such a movement.

"Oh! Natsu-san! You're awake!" a familiar voice exclaimed, clearly relieved.

The half-Fire Dragon recognized the voice immediately and turned his head (one of the only movements he could make), coming face to face with Wendy, Cait Shelter's half-Sky Dragon.

"Wendy?" Natsu croaked, his voice painfully strained, "What're you doin' here?"

"Makarov-san called Master Roubaul with an emergency request. When he said that you were hurt and needed urgent assistance, I came with Carla as soon as I could."

Natsu struggled to sit up again. "H-How long have I been out?"

Wendy gently forced him to lay back down. "Don't put too much strain on yourself. Your body still needs to recover from so much continuous exposer to anti-Ether. Erza-san told me what you did in Tartarous, and that's probably why you're so weak right now."

"Wendy…" Natsu strained, "Don't dodge the question. How long?"

The blue-haired girl twiddled her thumbs nervously. "...About three days."

...

Levy's POV:

...

Being in Magnolia was like a breath of fresh air. It was so different from Hajimari. Not that Hajumari was a terrible place, quite the opposite. But it was nice to get out for once and getting out was something Levy didn't have the luxury of doing most of the time with a store to run and all that.

Though Levy was concerned for Natsu's health, she couldn't help but enjoy spending proper time with her boyfriend in his hometown for a change. Today however, Anty decided to tag along since Wendy had mended her broken leg and healed her other injuries. She said she was getting sick of the antics of the Fairy Tail guild. Namely Gray's subconscious stripping habit, but she found the constant brawls aggravating as well, especially when she was trying to eat.

Anty had come back to Magnolia with the rescue team after they had managed to escape Tartarous. She said she was ready to change her ways in order to preserve Dewi's memory in the best way she could. Gajeel was still weary of the mallet-wielding mage and Levy knew it was for a good reason, but he could still show a little trust in Anty.

Over the past three days, Levy feels like she got to know Anty a little better. For instance, Levy learned that Anty had a high tolerance for spice after Gray dared her to down a whole bottle of hot sauce. Needless to say, she won that bet. She also had her own special brand of nerdy, but only when it came to vehicles and that cleared Gajeel from the room rather quickly. Yesterday, Juvia actually made it rain when she got upset that Gray wasn't paying attention to her and Anty promptly dragged Levy out into the rain and simply basked in the shower of cold, fresh water.

Today though, Anty requested that they hike a little in the forest. Levy thought that was a great idea since Gajeel has spoken highly of the forests bordering Magnolia and promptly agreed.

The half-Iron Dragon was less than thrilled and glared at Anty with a clear suspicion, but tagged along regardless. However, Gajeel made a point to keep Levy close and never let the petite bluenette stray out of his range.

They had been walking for quite a ways in total silence and the awkwardness was getting to Levy.

So naturally, she tried to strike up a conversation.

"So, Anty. Do you like being in a forest?" Levy inquired.

The shrinking mallet mage nodded. "I lived in a forest for a good chunk of my life, it's like a second home to me."

"Why'd y'ah live in a forest?" Gajeel grunted.  
Anty hesitated for a moment. "...My parents abandoned me in the woods when I was four. I had to learn to survive on my own or die trying. It was maddening and if Master Jupus didn't find me, I probably would have taken...drastic measures."

"How long did you live in the forest?" Levy asked.

"About 5 years. I don't know the exact number, but it felt like I was trapped in an endless forest for a hundred years. No matter how far I walked, I could never find civilization. It was like purgatory."

Levy frowned. "I'm sorry I brought it up."

"No no. It's fine Levy-chan. I'm over it."

Gajeel suddenly froze, throwing an arm in front of Levy and halting her movement.

"Huh? Gajeel wh-"

"Shh! I hear somethin'." he muttered.

The trio fell dead silent. Gajeel was rigid and Levy could literally see his ears twitching as he listened to the environment around them. Levy scanned the bushes and treeline for any movement, but found none at the moment.

Until a glint of silver pointing at Anty caught her eye.

Without a second thought, Levy tackled the shrinking mallet mage to the ground as an arrow wizzed over her head.

"Shrimp!" Gajeel shouted, "Y'ah okay?"

Levy nodded and stood up, Anty following in suit. Both of them eyed the spot where the arrow originated wearily. The half-Iron Dragon followed her gaze and his left arm shimmered for a moment before morphing into an iron rod. The rest of his visible skin became covered in steely grey scales.

"Iron Dragon's Club!"

The rod extended with frightening speed and precision at the spot and struck something that sounded like flesh. A shrill scream of pain rang from the bush, and as if that was a signal of some sort, a group of twelve people leapt from their hiding places and surrounded the trio.

Every one of them had the emblem of Blood Eagle visible on a part of their body.

"Blood Eagle!" Levy exclaimed.

Gajeel scowled. "How the heck did they know where we were?"

Anty snorted. Levy and Gajeel looked at her. Her bangs were handing over her eyes, leaving only a vicious smile visible.

"No." Levy whispered, "You...You lead them here? Why?"

Anty laughed darkly and looked up at Levy. "You...idiot. Did you really think I could change?"

"So I was right about y'ah all along. You were goin' to backstab us from the start." Gajeel growled.

One of the Blood Eagle members laughed. "Of course. Anty-sama is the best when it comes to backstabbing."

"But what about Dewi!? Wasn't she your friend?" Levy protested.

She couldn't believe what was happening, yet a part of her knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

Anty scoffed. "That miserable welp. My 'friend'? Get real. I'm a dark mage. We don't have friends."

The dark mages laughed mockingly while Levy fought back tears. Anty was lying to her the whole time. The Solid Script mage was willing to bet that she had faked being traumatized to cox them to let their guard down.

Levy balled her fists by her side. "I trusted you Anty…"

"And that's where you made your mistake. Now you and your little boyfriend are going to disappear. Forever."

Anty clicked her fingers and the Blood Eagle mages began to close in as Anty drew her hammer. Levy felt like panicking, but Gajeel looked excited.

"Y'er the one who made the mistake, y'ah little double-crosser." he cackled, "Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!"

Metal spears fired like machine gun fire from Gajeel's arm, which he had converted into a spear. Seven of the Blood Eagle members went down.

Gajeel flashed his signature crocodile grin at Levy. "Go for it Shrimp."

Levy extended her index finger at Anty, who looked a little nervous.

"N-Now now Levy-chan, you don't need to do that! I-I was just actin'. I was pretending to turn on you I-I swear!"

"Funny. I don't believe you." Levy frowned, " **Solid Script: Tornado**!"

The word 'tornado' flashed between the two mages before a towering funnel of wind swirled into existence. The wind pulled on Levy, threatening to pull her in as well, but thanks to Gajeel and his heavy iron body, they were both anchored as the remaining Blood Eagle mages were thrown around the area and all knocked out.

Anty included.

The spell ended and the tornado vanished as if it was never there. The only trace it left behind were the unconscious forms of the dark mages scattered around them.

Gajeel released his hold on Levy, but she stayed where she was. They won, but she didn't feel any joy in the victory. All she felt was a deep feeling of betrayal. Levy had trusted Anty. She believed she had changed for the better, but it was all a lie.

A heavy hand lightly ruffled her hair that Levy immediately identified as Gajeel's.

"It'll be okay Levy. It's her loss that she turned away such a great friend." the half-Iron Dragon grinned.

Levy felt tears welling in her eyes, but wiped them away. As sad as she was, this wasn't worthy of tears.

"You're right Gajeel. Thank you."

Gajeel flashed a grin. "Notta problem Shrimp. Now let's gather up all these bad guys and turn 'em in."

...

Lucy's POV:

...

Three days. It's been three days since Lucy had spoken to Loke and he still hadn't returned. There were moments where Lucy considered just summoning him and demanding he explain why he was taking so long, but she had a feeling she should just be patient even if it was annoying.

Hanging out with Yukino was a good way to pass the time though. She introduced Lucy to her Zodiac Spirits; Pisces, Libra, and the fabled thirteenth Zodiac, Ophiuchus. Well, she told her about the last one, but Lucy got the message. In return, Lucy introduced Yukino to as many of her own Celestial Spirits as she could manage with the exceptions of Loke and Aquarius for obvious reasons.

Lucy had also met two of Sabertooth's strongest, Ogra and Rufus. Rufus was a pretty okay guy, a little unnerving sometimes, but okay. Ogra...well he was his own brand of annoying with his constant singing (off key she might add)and boasting about how great he was. Lucy would never admit this outloud, but she actually prefered Sting's company to Ogra's.

Yukino had been letting Lucy stay with her for the time being, but naturally Lucy felt like she was leeching off the white-haired mage and somehow managed to land a temporary part-time job waiting tables at the diner just across the street from the Sabertooth guildhall.

Lucy had told the owner -a kindly old man- that she'd only be able to work for him for a while, but he was just glad to have some help and hired her without second thought. It was a nice little diner that served high-quality yet homely food. The blonde mage hadn't interacted heavily with the other waiters and waitresses, mostly because they weren't the most social and also Lucy didn't want to make any attachments to this place before she left.

She was still hoping that Loke would come any day and tell her that Natsu and the others were on their way, but she'd be lying if she said her patience with the lion-spirit wasn't wearing thin. There were times where she was tempted to flat out get on a train to Magnolia and track down the Fairy Tail guildhall and wait for Natsu there, but she kept telling herself to stay put and wait.

Other than the wait being a real patience killer, Roba wasn't too bad. It was no Hajimari or Magnolia, but it had its own sort of charm.

The ringing of the bell above the front door brought Lucy from her thoughts. Standing in the doorway was Yukino accompanied by Minerva. Lucy was surprised Minerva was still in Roba since she had nothing tying her to this town anymore, but that didn't mean she wasn't happy to see the half-god.

"Welcome to Jitaku*! How may I be of service to you today?" Lucy greeted.

"One table for two please." Minerva chuckled.

Lucy laughed back. "This way then."

The blonde Celestial mage lead the two mages to a table by the window and handed them their menus.

"So Lucy, how are you liking Ruba?" Minerva asked while looking over the menu.

"It's nice. I thought I wouldn't like being here, but it's actually grown on me a little." Lucy admitted.

Yukino nodded in agreement. "It has its own brand of charm, doesn't it?"

"Yeah. So, would you two like something to drink?"

"Water." Minerva said.

Yukino shook her head. "I don't need anything. Thank you Lucy-sama."

Lucy nodded. "Alright. I'll be back with your water Minerva. Look over the menu and I'll be over to take your orders when you're ready."

The Celestial Mage walked back to the kitchen to get the water, but something was nawing at her lately. As much as she likes Minerva and Yukino, she'd have to leave them eventually and she felt bad for it, but Lucy also knew she couldn't stay because she had a previous obligation and no amount of telling herself she can visit could make the feeling go away.

But she still couldn't help but wonder how Natsu was doing.

...

Natsu's POV:

...

Natsu couldn't believe his ears.

"'Three days'?" he echoed.

Wendy nodded. "Three days. W-We were worried you wouldn't wake up at all. We synthesised a stronger antidote from the vial we found in your pocket, but you had a really bad fever and it didn't break until just an hour ago. Gajeel-san told me you tried to fight against your day of humanity. Is that true?"

Natsu nodded meekly. He knew it was a bad idea to fight against something that to half-dragons is absolute and he wasn't sure how he overcame it, but it wasn't like there were very many options at the time.

Wendy gasped. "Natsu-san, do you realize how dangerous that was! You could have died!"

"If I didn't do anything we would have all died anyway!" he snapped.

The half-Sky Dragon looked taken aback by the pinkette's sudden outburst, but muttered a small 'I'm sorry' only audible to half-dragons. Natsu immediately felt bad.

"Geez. I-I'm sorry Wendy. I shouldn't have snapped like that."

"I-It's okay Natsu-san. I-I'm just glad that you're okay. Should I go tell the others?"

The half-Fire Dragon nodded and Wendy disappeared behind the door. After she left, Natsu took in his surroundings. It looked like an infirmary. That much he was sure of. It smelled like disinfectant and whatever else he believed smelled like a hospital. Natsu was never so glad to have his dragon senses back. The last day of humanity felt like it lasted forever and it was unbearable being so cut off from the world without his enhanced senses to pick up every last little detail.

Natsu wasn't exactly sure where he was, but he had a suspicion that might not be too far off point judging from the muffled sounds of fighting vibrating through the wooden floors.

Before he could think too much into it, the door flew open and something small and blue darted through the opening and slammed into Natsu's chest.

Something wet soaked through Natsu's vest, which he suspected was tears as the blue something that darted through the door was Happy, the flying blue cat that had become his and Lucy's furry friend.

"Happy?"  
"Natsu! Don't do something like that ever again! Don't you know how sad we'd all be if you died!?" the cat wailed.

"H-Huh? But you don't know me very well…"

"That doesn't matter! You're our nakama! Even if you're not a mage of Fairy Tail!"

Someone standing in the doorway laughed a little before entering themselves. "Happy's got a point Natsu. You shouldn't be so quick to assume that we don't care."

"Erza? What're you doin' here?"

The redheaded terror chuckled and stood next to the infirmary cot. "This is the Fairy Tail guildhall, why wouldn't I be here?"

Natsu blinked before laughing himself. "Never thought I'd be back here so soon!"

"Fate is a funny thing isn't it?"

"OI! I HEARD THE SALAMANDER IS UP! WHERE IS HE!"

Thundering footsteps come down the hall and in burst Fairy Tail's local half-Iron Dragon. He looked like he was out for blood. Specifically half-Fire Dragon blood. Regardless, Natsu waved cheerily at Gajeel, which only served to make him angrier.

"Salamander...what the hell were you thinking? Oh wait, y'ah don't do mucha that."

"What's that supposed to mean metal head!?"

A vein pulsed in Gajeel's forehead. "'What's that supposed to mean'!? Y'ah realized y'ah could've died, right?"

"Why the heck is everyone scolding me about that?" Natsu huffed crossing his arms, careful to avoid hitting Happy.

Gajeel stormed up to the cot and grabbed Natsu by the scarf. "'Cause fightin' against y'er day of humanity is dangerous for us half-dragons. One wrong move and it would've been curtains for y'ah."

"It would've been curtains for all of us if I didn't do somethin'!" Natsu protested.

Gajeel was about to retort when more people came in.

"Flame brain's finally up? About time."

"That is good...right?"

"Gajeel! Put him down right now!"

The half-Iron Dragon obeyed and released Natsu's scarf but shot him a look that said 'we aren't done talking about this yet' before retreating to the corner of the room as Gray, Levy, and some blue haired girl that Natsu didn't recognize walked up.

"Gray, Juvia, Levy. Glad to see you're here. Where's Lily?" Erza asked.

"He's talking with Carla somewhere." Levy chuckled.

Erza chuckled as well before looking back over at Natsu. "I hope you learned from this experience Natsu."

The half-Fire Dragon cocked his head. "Huh? There was something to learn?"

"Of course ash-for-brains."

Levy was quick to cover up. "What Gray means is the lesson to learn here is...is...Gajeel help me out."

"Huh? Why do I have ta?"

"You just do!"

"For someone so smart, that's a lame argument."

Juvia cut into their argument, therefore possibly preventing a disaster. "Juvia thinks the lesson in this is to accept help when needed."

Erza nodded approvingly. "Very good Juvia. Natsu, we all know that you're a very strong and capable fighter, but there are times where you will need to ask for help."

He'd never admit it, but Erza was right. Even though he did have an escape plan, without his friend's help his chances of actually succeeding were slim.

So to avoid getting pummeled, he nodded his head as if agreeing with what the Titaina just said. Instead of getting pummeled however, he got his head slammed into the side of Erza's metal breastplate in one of her signature skull cracking hugs.

"I'm glad you understand Natsu. But just let me make this clear." a demonic aura swirled around Erza, "If you try anything like that again, you won't have to worry about your own stupid decision killing you."

"A-Aye…"

Erza released him and her aura of death and destruction disappeared as if it were never there. After that, the topic of the conversation seemed to shift from Natsu's stupid heroics to a certian topic he had forgotten about in all the chaos…

"Too bad matin' season is over. Y'ah lost y'er only sure fire chance of findin' your soulmate for the year." Gajeel muttered.

Gray snorted. "'Mating season'? Is that a half-dragon thing?"

Gajeel nodded. "That's how Levy and I hooked up."

"And how you got your wings?" Juvia asked.

The half-Iron Dragon nodded again.

"Oh~ Juvia wishes she and Gray-sama could fall in love like Gajeel-san and Levy-chan and fly into the sunset~!"

The water mage failed to notice Gray was slowly inching away as she daydreamed until he was sprinting down the halls and Juvia left to chase after him.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Well. That happened." Gajeel grunted.

Erza nodded. "Let's let Natsu get some rest. Happy, come on."

The blue cat looked hesitant so Natsu helped him out.

"Actually Erza. I wouldn't mind the company." he smiled.

The redhead looked surprised for a moment before smiling and nodding. "Alright then. Just don't get into trouble."

Levy waved and Gajeel just grunted as the three mages left, leaving Natsu and Happy alone in the infirmary. The half-Fire Dragon noticed that Lucy's headband was laying on the night stand. A small smile found its way onto his face. Even after all of this, that headband was still there. Just like Lucy.

 _Don't worry Luce. I'll be comin' soon._

...

 **A/N: This...is the longest chapter I've ever written I'm so glad I split it up. Can I just say how much fun it is to write Solid Script spells? It's such an underrated magic but it's so cool! And I bet you all thought I was going to give Anty a redemption arc, did you? *evil laugh***

 **To be perfectly honest, that was the plan at first -_-"**

 **So what do you all think so far? Sorry if the characters were a bit OOC, but I realized that Natsu hasn't really ever been shown interacting one-on-one with Levy and I'm running into the same problem I ran into when characterizing Sting and Rogue's relationship with Lucy. There just isn't a lot to go off of. I hope it was okay.**

 **See y'ah all next chapter and Happy Holidays :)**

 **Jitaku= Japanese for "home"**


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: Ask and you shall receive, Chapter 31 is here! Sorry I took so long, but the reception where I am right now isn't the greatest. But on the bright side, guess what happens this chapter? I think you all are going to like it ;)**

 **And just because I feel generous today, I'll give you guys a few tiny spoilers about what's going to happen in an upcoming chapter. Tartarous is not done yet. They will make ONE final appearance and then that's it. Tartarous/Blood Eagle Arc, over. Done. Completed. Then it will be fluff an' stuff for a bit before we get into another arc that will hopefully just be Natsu and Lucy in terms of original cast.**

 **I will not tell you anymore of what I've got planned beyond that, so you're just going to have to wait until I post.**

 **And before you get your pitch forks and torches, remember that despite what I've put these characters through, I love 'em to bits. They will make it through somehow.**

 **Enjoy!**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Two more days passed before the half-Fire Dragon was allowed to leave the infirmary. Emphasise on "allowed". He had attempted to stage multiple escape attempts from the infirmary in an effort to resume looking for Lucy, but was foiled each time by one of his "so called friends". Eventually, Erza drove the point home. Literally. Natsu stopped trying to resume his search at the moment.

However, thanks to Wendy's healing magic and a little half-dragon super healing of his own, Natsu was up and ready to go in no time flat especially now that he can actually stand without face-planting onto the floor two seconds later like he had been a few days before. This had been one of the many reasons why he kept getting caught.

The past two days were kind of boring since Natsu was practically chained to his bed (not literally, but Erza had considered it after his fifth attempt at escape), but Happy helped ease Natsu's creeping boredom by asking what all had happened after the Oracion Seis were defeated. Unfortunately, there wasn't all that much to tell and Natsu may or may not have left out a couple small details, but the blue cat was satisfied with the story nonetheless.

Natsu did notice that Anty was missing and even though she had kidnapped him, he couldn't help but worry about the mallet-wielding mage regardless. But when Natsu asked Levy where Anty was, she frowned and Gajeel told him that she had better places to be. The half-Fire Dragon may not be the smartest, but even he could piece together that Anty had double-crossed them.

Somehow, he was surprised.

That was yesterday, now he was up on his own two feet and ready to go, but even though the pinkette was well and able to go off on his own and resume his search for Lucy, Erza and a number of other people he had become friends with in Fairy Tail told him that he had to make a full recovery before he would allowed to go solo. Even so; Erza, Juvia, Gray, and even Wendy, Happy, Lily, and Carla firmly declared they were coming too and now they all were gathered in the main area of the guildhall with Gajeel and Levy, debating their next move.

More or less.

"You guys don't have to come y'ah know." Natsu huffed, "I can find Luce on my own."

Gray promptly knocked him on the head. "Are you forgetting that Lucy is our friend too?"

Natsu was about to challenge the ice-maker mage to a fight, but both parties were distracted by a certain water mage muttering to herself.

"Gray-sama seems to care for this girl. Is this 'Lucy' a potential love-rival..?" Juvia gasped to herself, a dark hue withering around her.

The small group sweat-dropped at the water mage's words, but Erza brought them back to the topic at hand.

"Gray is right Natsu. We care about Lucy as much as you do."

"Yeah, Lucy-san is like an older sister to me!" Wendy agreed, "If she's in trouble, I want to help too!"

"Wendy, shouldn't you be going back to your own guild?" Levy asked.

The half-Sky Dragon shook her head. "The reason I came here is because Natsu needed my help and if he's going to find Lucy-san right now, than I need to come too to make sure he doesn't reopen that wound in his stomach."

The little half-dragon was right to place her concerns in that wound. Despite her healing powers and Natsu's own supernatural healing abilities, the wound Mard Geer had left in the side of his stomach still refused to completely heal and was still more fragile than Natsu would ever admit out loud.

"I-It's fine Wendy!" Natsu protested.

Gajeel raised a studded eyebrow at him. Before Natsu could ask what he was looking at, the half-Iron Dragon delivered a hard punch to the wound in question. The pinkette choked back a shout of pain, but a strangled squeak came out regardless as the pain left Natsu doubled over, gripping the area around the wound tightly.

"Don't try ta insist y'er fine Natsu. Half-dragon or not, y'ah still need ta heal."

Natsu opened his mouth to protest but Erza cut him off.

"You are right Gajeel, but just because Natsu still has a few wounds that need to heal doesn't mean he can't resume searching for Lucy. As long as he doesn't get into a fight that is." the redhead commented, "You said that you were heading to Konzern, correct?"

"Ain't that the place that train the Salamander guy was on was going when he kidnapped Lucy?" Gray inquired.

Natsu nodded.

"Why would Lucy be there?" the shirtless mage asked.

"Snow pansy, yer clothes." Gajeel grunted.

While Gray ducked under a nearby table to recover his discarded shirt, Levy explained what they had found out about the circumstances that surrounded Lucy's kidnapping. Including that she was the missing Heartfillia heiress. Gray returned in time to hear what Levy had to say and both he and Erza washed white with shock.

"Hey Erza, didn't we consider that Lucy was the missing heiress?" Gray asked.

The Requip mage nodded meekly. "And we dismissed that possibility."

"We're idiots."

"Yeah, what else is new?" Natsu scoffed, Erza then shoot the half-Fire Dragon a pointed glare that quickly made him change the topic, "The point is, Lucy's old man hired Blood Eagle to bring her back. That Salamander guy actually was a high ranking member."

Erza scowled. "What a despicable thing to do to his own daughter."

"So all we have to do is go to Konzern and convince Lucy's father to let her go?" Happy suggested.

"Foolish tomcat, it won't be that easy." Carla scolded.

"You're right. It won't. Especially since you're looking in the wrong place." a vaguely familiar voice stated.

Gray looked over his shoulder. "Loke? Where the heck have you been...? And what's with that get up? Gotta date or somethin'?"

"Or something."

Loke joined the circle, standing next to the ice-maker mage. Natsu's eyes narrowed at the mage, remembering him as the guy who tried to flirt with Lucy when they first came to Fairy Tail. The half-Fire Dragon felt his scales ripple at the memory. Loke seemed to notice and sweated a little, adjusting his necktie like he was getting uncomfortable.

"You know where Lucy is?" Natsu demanded.

"Yes and I can assure you Miss Lucy is safe and sound in Roba at the Sabertooth guild."

Wendy gasped. "Sabertooth?! Why is Lucy at Sabertooth?"

Natsu held up his hand. "Hold up? Who exactly is Sabertooth?"

Gajeel scoffed. "I forgot y'ah lived in the woods y'er whole life."

Levy lightly slapped Gajeel's chest, flashing a disapproving glare before looking at Natsu. "Sabertooth is a mage guild, like Fairy Tail. They're actually a very strong guild, but I've heard they're very strict. Only the strongest mages get in and if a member loses a fight, they get excommunicated."

"That's harsh." Natsu said.

"Juvia has heard that the members are ruthless in fights. They have taken out entire dark guilds and very few are able to move on their own." the water mage added.

"Why would Miss Lucy be in such a place?" Lily inquired.

Loke adjusted his blue tinted glasses. "Sabertooth's local half-dragons brought her there. It wasn't exactly Miss Lucy's idea, but they meant her no intentional harm. Besides, it's not like they could harm her even if they wanted."

"What's that supposed ta mean y'ah playboy?" Gajeel asked.

"I'm sure you've noticed by now Gajeel. Miss Lucy is much stronger than she appears. She successfully battled both a half-god and the master of the dark guild Blood Eagle in quick succession as well as casted a high-level Celestial spell multiple times within a time interval of a few hours."

"Are we talking about the same Lucy?" Happy asked, clearly surprised.

The mage nodded. "There's much more to her than even she knows."

"Hold up. The _master_ of Blood Eagle attacked Lucy and she _won_?" Natsu demanded.

Loke nodded. "By a landslide. Or rather a water slide."

A toothy grin spread across Natsu's face. "Way ta go Lucy!"

"Wait a minute. If Lucy is more powerful than even she knows, how do you know Loke?" Gray asked.

The mage fell silent for a moment. "It's a little complicated, but let's just say, I met her mother."

The group stared at the suited man in shock.

"Y'ah didn't flirt with 'er did y'ah?" Gajeel questioned, breaking the silence.

Loke, for once, looked disgusted that the half-Iron Dragon would ask him such a question.

"I would never flirt with my lady Layla! I have _some_ restraint."

Natsu abruptly turned away from the group and started towards the exit. He was done standing around and the half-Fire Dragon felt that if he stood still a minute longer, he'd explode.

"Where are you going Natsu?" Erza demanded.

"We know where Lucy is now, so what're we doing standin' around?"

Footsteps followed behind the half-Fire Dragon as he exited the guild. Natsu glanced over his shoulder and the whole group was coming up behind him.

"Y'ah think we're lettin' you go alone dragon breath?" Gray joked.

"We would like to be positive of Lucy's safety as well." Erza added.

"I wouldn't mind seeing Lucy-san again." Wendy agreed.

"Juvia has to make sure Love Rival does not try to steal Gray-sama from her." the water mage declared determinedly.

Gajeel crossed his arms and smirked. "Shrimp and I ain't goin'. We'll hold down the fort here incase Bunny Girl shows up."

Levy didn't look too happy about it but looked like she decided not to argue for whatever reason.

"Lily's comin' though to make sure y'ah don't get y'erself killed." Gajeel added.

"Shut up y'ah human scrap heap!" Natsu shouted.

"I ain't human and y'ah know it Salamander."

"I thought you were gonna stop callin' me that!"

The half-Iron Dragon flashed a crocodile grin at Natsu. "When did I ever say that?"

Natsu clenched an angry fist, his scales rippling for a second. "You…"

"Alright, that's enough you two." Lily declared getting between the two half-dragons in his battle form.

"Lily is right." Carla agreed, "We must focus on the task at hand."

Natsu sighed, letting his frustration ebb away into a determined smile. "Alright Happy. You and I'll fly on ahead an-"

"Oh no you don't." Gray said, cutting him off, "You're not ditching us that easily."

"I don't think he was trying to ditch you guys." Happy sweat-dropped.

Before Natsu could say anything more to defend himself, Erza had grabbed hold of his scarf and was dragging him towards the train station. Or in his mind, Hell itself.

"We are all going together Natsu. No flying ahead. Do you understand?" Erza stated, shooting a terrifying glare at the half-Fire Dragon

Natsu subconsciously nodded out of fear of getting murdered by an angry Titania. The half-Fire Dragon might not have known Erza very long, but he understood the unspoken rule of 'don't piss off Erza unless you want to die'. Soon enough, it was too late for Natsu to try to figure out how to worm his way out of this situation as the redheaded Requip mage had her sights trained on their destination and her grip was like an inescapable vise.

"Hav'a nice trip Salamander!" Gajeel called from the platform.

"Shut up iron breath! I'll get you back for this!"

The half-Iron Dragon chuckled before returning to the confines of the Fairy Tail guild hall with Levy in tow. Eventually, the large building had disappeared from sight as the train station came into view.

...

...one train ride later...

...

The train had come to a stop at the Roba train station and for once Natsu wasn't the first one to bolt for the doors as they opened.

"That's the first time I've ever enjoyed being on a train. Thanks Wendy. I can't believe I forgot about your **Troia** spell." Natsu laughed stepping of the train on his own for once in his life.

The half-Sky Dragon smiled and followed. "No problem Natsu. I'm glad I could help."

While everyone else was getting their things and stretching their legs after the five hour train ride, Natsu decided to scale the roof of the trainstation and get a better look at the city. The air was nice and clean, unfortunately Natsu couldn't pick up any obvious trace of Lucy's scent, but he did discover one useful fact.

The location of the Sabertooth guildhall. It was hard to miss since it was so huge and it was about five blocks away. Other then that, Natsu didn't pay much mind to the rest of the city.

"Natsu! What are you doing up there!?" Carla called from below.

The half-Fire Dragon didn't think twice and jumped down from the roof and landing with a light _thud_. "I found the Sabertooth guildhall."

"No duh flame princess." Gray muttered.

"You wanna finish what we started ice pixie?"

"Only if you're ready to eat dirt."

At that moment, Erza appeared from the direction of the map counter. Immediately noticing the impending fight, she glared at the pair.

" **Are you two fighting?** "

The ice-maker mage and the half-Fire Dragon immediately broke from their tension and pretended to be friends until the Titania was satisfied.

"I have directions to the Sabertooth guildhall. We should make haste however before it closes for the night."

Natsu cupped a hand around his fist, an excited grin on his face. "Alright! Let's go rescue Lucy!"

Wendy grinned excitedly as well. "I can't wait to see Lucy-san again. I never got the chance to properly thank her for helping me during the incident with the Oracion Seis."

The group didn't waste another minute and set off in the direction Erza indicated to be where Sabertooth was located. The sun was beginning to sink towards the horizon, washing the area in a vibrant red. The streets weren't as busy as Natsu believed they normally were and some vendors were actually starting to close shop for the night. Thankfully, Sabertooth wasn't a long walk away. At this point, Natsu couldn't restrict himself to an easy pace any longer and rushed up to the large double doors and in the most Natsu-like fashion, as Lucy had dubbed it, kicked the doors in, almost ripping them off their hinges.

"LUCY!" he bellowed, his own voice rolling across the room like the sonic boom that he generated by kicking the doors in.

The half-Fire Dragon's entrance had surprised several members about to leave the building themselves as well as silenced the remaining members of the guild. All of them stared at him like he was the oddest thing they had ever seen, but Natsu didn't pay attention to them since he was too busy looking for Lucy. Her scent was there, but it was stale, meaning she hadn't been there since at least that morning.

A small ping of disappointment fluttered inside him, but his self-pity was interrupted by a sharp blow from an angry Titania.

"Natsu! What were you thinking running off and kicking in this guild's doors?" she barked, clearly angry.

"Geez flame brain, this is rude even for you." Gray muttered.

The pinkette growled. "Put a snow cone in it ice princess."

"Who are you and why are you looking for Lucy-sama?" a female voice asked firmly.

A mage with bluish white hair forced her way to the front until she was standing face to face with Natsu. There was a certain determination in her eyes that alluded to that this mage cared for Lucy as a good friend.

Natsu flashed a friendly smile. "We're her friends. I'm Natsu."

The mage seemed to recognize the name. "'Natsu'? You are...Lucy-sama's half-dragon friend?"

"Yep!" Natsu beamed, "So where is Lucy? She's still here, right?"

"Lucy-sama doesn't come by the guild very often as she is not on the best of terms with the master after blasting a hole in the wall and soon after flooding the guildhall."

"Are we talking about the same Lucy? That sounds like something ash breath would do." Gray commented.

Natsu shrugged. "Sure. Lucy might not look it, but she's strong, man."

"Yes. But I'm sure Lucy-sama will be here shortly. A Celestial Spirit of her's stopped by here not too long ago asking where she was."

"A Celestial Spirit?" Erza asked.

The mage nodded. "Yes, Leo the Lion, though he referred to himself as 'Loke of Fairy Tail'."

"LOKE'S A CELESTIAL SPIRIT!?" Gray exclaimed behind Natsu.

The half-dragon covered his ears and growled. "Geez, and I thought Lucy was loud."

"So where is Lucy-san now?" Wendy asked, steering the conversation back on topic.

"Lucy-sama is staying with me as of now, but she took up a part-time job at a diner to assist in paying for rent." the white-haired mage explained.

"Sounds like something Lucy would do." Happy shrugged comically.

The mage nodded. "Lucy-sama is a very kind and considerate person. Minerva-sama and I greatly enjoy her company."

Natsu grinned proudly. Lucy handled herself and made some friends in the process. He had been worrying over nothing. But that still left the question of where the Celestial Mage was.

"Guys!? What are you doing here?" a surprised and familiar voice exclaimed.

That question was answered quickly.

The tiny group turned around, and came face to face with Lucy Heartfillia. Natsu could barely see her over the heads of the Fairy Tail members, but he could smell her scent and it didn't help that all of them, with the exception of Juvia, attacked the Celestial Mage with a relieved group hug. The blonde mage squealed in surprise when the group of three (plus three cats) almost tackled her to the ground while laughing with relief, leaving Juvia, who was somewhat confused by their actions, and Natsu out.

"G-Guys!? C-Careful! You might reopen my wounds!" Lucy exclaimed.

At the word 'wounds' the mages immediately released Lucy, allowing her to catch her breath for a few moments. At least before Natsu walked up to her and glomped her with a firm hug of his own. For a second he wasn't sure if he was simply dreaming this or not. It sure felt like a dream. But the scent that completely overtook his sense of smell confirmed to him he wasn't dreaming.

Strawberries and vanilla. Lucy's own scent, unique to her alone.

Even if he was dreaming this somehow, even his dreams couldn't replicate Lucy's scent this perfectly.

Lucy didn't return Natsu's embrace and was completely rigid with obvious surprise. As if she wasn't sure he was really here or not either.

"N-Natsu? Is that really you?"

Natsu chuckled and pulled away so they were face-to-face. "'Course it's me y'ah weirdo."

Lucy smiled, but tears were running down her face. Panic immediately overtook the half-Fire Dragon.

"Oh sch-! What'd I do now! Geez, Lucy, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make y'ah cry!" he apologized frantically.

Unexpectedly, Lucy laughed and wiped away the tears. "It's okay Natsu. I'm not sad. I just glad that it's really you. I didn't expect to cry. Sorry about that."

Relief washed the panic away. At least until Natsu saw the familiar angry pink wound in Lucy's shoulder, completely exposed by her strapless white top. The pinkette leaned closer to get a better look at it. Despite it only being about a week old, it had healed up considerably quickly. Lucy had attributed her quick recovery to Wendy's magic and her own healing abilities, which she had jokingly referred to as supernatural.

But it looked like it was recently reopened and Natsu was positive there wasn't another scar running from one puncture hole to another all the way to the base of Lucy's neck.

Lucy stepped back a little, her hand covering the wound.

"G-Geez Natsu. You still don't know the meaning of personal space, d-do you?" she asked, nervously.

"Lucy. What happened?"

"It's not that important. Honest. They're almost healed anyway."

Natsu's heart dropped and he frowned. "Lucy. Do you have more wounds?"

The Celestial mage's eyes widened for a moment, realizing her misstep. Her own eyes flickered to the rows of bandages circling his own wound and she adopted a frown of her own.

"Natsu, did you get hurt too?"

Several different alarms rang in Natsu's head. He couldn't tell Lucy what happened to him after she got kidnapped. Not only was he still trying to get over it himself, but he didn't want to worry his friend, especially since the threat of Tartarous was still there.

Natsu flashed a slightly embarrassed smile and crafted a lie. "I fell down a ravine a couple days ago and got a bit banged up."

Lucy didn't look very convinced. "Natsu, we both know you're clumsy. But you aren't _that_ clumsy."

Hundreds of little alarms were ringing in the half-Fire Dragon's head. He should have known that Lucy wouldn't fall for such a simple excuse! What was he thinking!? He screwed up big time! What if he just wrecked his friendship with Lucy!?

Luckily for him, Erza came to his rescue.

"Natsu, why are Sabertooth's doors kicked in?" she growled.

"Why do you think?" Gray asked.

Natsu launched a miniature fistfight with the ice-maker wizard and by his standards, almost won until Erza interrupted them. The white-haired mage from before stepped out of the Sabertooth guildhall, casting a sideways glance at the half-Fire Dragon and the ice-maker mage before standing five paces from Lucy.

"I believe Natsu-sama was excited to see you Lucy-sama."

Wendy laughed. "He was. Natsu-san tried to fly ahead with Happy several times."

Juvia nodded. "Maybe Lucy-san isn't a Love Rival after all."

"Whoa whoa! What!?" Lucy exclaimed, "'Love-Rival'!?"

A dark aura hovered around Juvia. "You are not trying to steal Juvia's Gray-sama from her, are you?"

Lucy sweat-dropped. "Of course not."

"Probably because she's totally head-over-heels in looovvveee with Natsu." Happy teased.

"SHUT IT CAT!"

Natsu clasped his hands over his sensitive ears. "OWWW! WHY IS EVERYONE YELLING!?"

"You're yelling too." Carla pointed out, sweat-dropping.

"Happy does have a point though. It is very clear though that there is something a bit more than friendship between these two." Lily agreed.

The white haired mage nodded. "Yes. I could see Natsu-sama and Lucy-sama together. They seem very comfortable around each other."

Lucy groaned. "You too Yukino!? Seriously, can we talk about something else?"

"Indeed. There is still the issue of lodging. How about Gray, Wendy, Juvia and I search for lodging for the night. Yukino, could you direct us to a hotel?" Erza asked.

Yukino looked confused for a moment, but seemed to catch on to whatever devious plan the Titania was brewing and nodded. "Follow me."

"We'll come too." Lily said, following the mages.

The little cats trailed after the mages, leaving the half-Fire Dragon and the Celestial Mage alone. Even the mages of Sabertooth had picked up on whatever the Fairy Tail mages were scheming and had made themselves scarce.

Lucy shifted awkwardly and admittedly Natsu, once he was back in the moment, was feeling a little uncomfortable himself in this uneasy silence.

Lucy coughed uncomfortably. "Um...well. You wanna...sit by the river and...talk?"

"Uh...sure? Wait...there's a river here?"

Lucy chuckled and took Natsu's hand. "Of course, dummy."

"...Hey! Who're you callin' a dummy?" the pinkette fumed, a few seconds late.

Lucy laughed at his delayed reaction and lead him behind the Sabertooth guildhall. The massive building had been built a quarter of a mile from a river bank. The mirror-like surface of the river was turned a cherry red as the sun sunk closer to the horizon. In the east, the moon was beginning to become visible. Thankfully, it was its usual silvery white rather than a flaming red.

The bank of the river was a sloped hill that was covered in soft, cool grass and dotted with the occasional rock and tree. A couple weeping willows hung their lanky branches over the river, occasionally skimming the surface and creating soft ripples in the water as it flowed lazily by the shore.

Lucy released Natsu's hand and sat at the base of a thick trunked weeping willow and leaned against the bark. A small stab of cold hit Natsu's hand as Lucy's left his as the warmth of her hand suddenly left his and exposed it to the cool evening.

The Celestial Mage looked up at Natsu, flashed a cheery grin and patted the spot next to her in the grass.

"Come on. Take a seat."

The half-dragon obeyed and took a step closer before remembering something.

"Oh! Before I forget!" Natsu reached into his pocket and pulled out Lucy's pink headband.

The half-Fire Dragon dramatically dropped to one knee and flamboyantly held out the headband to Lucy.

"You're headband, my lady." Natsu said in a really bad accent.

"Why thank you, sir dragon." Lucy laughed, putting on an equally bad accent while taking back her headband and wrapping it around her wrist, "You found my trail didn't you?"

"Of course."

"And you kept my headband."

"Yep."

It could have been the light of the setting sun, but the blonde's cheeks looked a little rosier than usual.

The half-Fire Dragon shrugged it off and sat down against the willow tree. For once, actually minded Lucy's personal space. The blonde raised an eyebrow at him and sighed.

"Okay Natsu. What's up with you? You've been acting a little weird lately. Is everything alright?" Lucy asked.

"Huh? Whatch'a talkin' about Luce? Everything's fine."

"Then look me in the eye and tell me that."

The half-Fire Dragon didn't believe that would be too much of a challenge, but he was dead wrong. He couldn't even meet the blonde's chocolate gaze.

"You're a really bad liar Natsu. What happened? And don't try that lame excuse from earlier" Lucy asked.

Natsu sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It's not somethin' I wanna talk about right now Luce."

"Natsu, I'm your friend. You can talk to me about anything."

"I know Luce, but...I just don't wanna worry y'ah."

"You're making me worry right now by not telling me." Lucy said, worry in her tone, "Natsu, did something bad happen to you while I was gone?"

The pinkette winced. "'Gone'? Is that how you refer to being kidnapped by dark mages hired by your own father?"

Natsu felt Lucy stiffen next to him.

"Luc-"

"How did...you know about that Natsu?" Lucy whispered shakily.

It took a little while to fill Lucy in on all the events that had transpired after her kidnapping. About how Blood Eagle left the flag in the clearing, how Levy had pieced together who Lucy really was and after that Lucy went off to look for her.

He left out the detail that Levy and Gajeel had tagged along and he left out that he had gotten ambushed by other members of Blood Eagle and the excursion at Tartarous. Lucy had enough on her mind as it was, no need to add more fuel to the fire.

When Natsu had finished, it had gotten dark and Lucy had fallen silent. Out of the corner of his eyes, Natsu could see that Lucy was still awake, but something silvery traced down her face, revealed in the light of the waning moon.

"...Lucy? Are you.."

The Celestial Mage choked out a sob, doubled over and cupped her face in her hands. "I'm sorry."

Natsu jumped a little in surprise. "L-Lucy? Y'ah don't have to apologize."

The blonde mage didn't seem to calm down and continued crying. She didn't seem to show any signs of stopping. It made Natsu's heart ache seeing Lucy cry like that.

The half-Fire Dragon scooted closer to Lucy and gently pulled the crying mage into a firm hug. The Celestial mage returned Natsu's hug while sobbing into his shoulder, muttering 'I'm sorry' over and over until she finally calmed down.

"N-Natsu?" she croaked, her voice watery from crying.

"Yeah Luce?"

"Aren't you...mad?"

Natsu flinched at the question. "Why'd I be mad Luce? Didn't I tell y'ah you were entitled to your secrets?"

"Yeah...but-"

"But nothing Lucy. If anything, I'm mad at your old man for doin' that to y'ah."

"I still feel bad. I-I didn't worry you too much, did I?" Lucy asked pulling back and wiping away the last of the tears.

"Of _course_ you worried me Luce." Natsu said matter-of-factly, "You're nakama, so of course I'm going to lose it if you're in trouble."

The Celestial Mage looked at Natsu with wide eyes, and smiled a little.

Natsu flashed a toothy grin of his own. "So, what was your mom like?"

Lucy looked surprised. "H-Huh?"

"I never had a mom, she died after I was born." Natsu explained.

The blonde grinned softly. "You're curious about what having a mom is like, aren't you?"

Natsu nodded at a comically fast rate.

Lucy laughed heartily. "Okay, I'll tell you, but,"

Natsu's expression dropped. The dreadful 'but'.

"Only if you tell me what you've been doing the seven years after Igneel disappeared."

Now it was the half-Fire Dragon's turn to look at Lucy in surprise. No one ever really was curious about what he had been up to after Igneel disappeared. Anyone who ever would find themselves anywhere near him would ask what it was like to be raised by a dragon. In his opinion, it wasn't any different to be raised by a human.

The pinkette threw back his head and laughed, for some reason Lucy got flustered by that action.

"Wh-Why are you laughing?"

Natsu slapped his knee a couple of times and calmed himself down to where he could speak. "You really are weird Luce."

"Huh?"

"No one ever asked me what I did the past seven years. They only ever asked what it was like being raised by a dragon."

Lucy chuckled. "Why would they ask that? I imagine to you it isn't any different then being raised by a human."

Natsu laughed. "Exactly!"

Time felt like a nonexistent concept to the pair as they chatted. Lucy described the shenanigans she got into with Aquarius and all the fun she had with her mother before she passed away when Lucy was about nine. It seemed to hurt to talk about it, but Lucy didn't spare a single detail regardless of how much it had visibly hurt her. Jude sounded like a better guy when Lucy's mom, Layla was still alive, but when she died he changed for the worse.

But regardless, Lucy's mom sounded like an amazing person. Natsu wished he knew if his mom was half as incredible as Lucy's. Admittedly, the half-Fire Dragon wished he knew what his mom was like.

Then it came to be Natsu's turn to tell his own tale. There wasn't much to talk about in terms of the seven years he spent alone. Just a lot of training, monster fighting, and running. He didn't remember all the details of every town he passed through. They all blended together for him.

It felt like each town he was in was the same. Every person hating and fearing him because of the blood running through his veins. Some times it took every ounce of his will to keep himself from doing something he'd regret. Like attacking the people out of anger or...ending himself in an attempt to escape the pain the people caused him. At the time, the only thing keeping him from going over the edge was his determination to find Igneel.

Eventually, Natsu got to the topic of Lisanna. About how they met in the rain after the local kids had finished venting their anger on him and how Lisanna had willingly shared her umbrella with him. Lucy didn't react the way he thought she would. She just stayed by him and helped calm him down when he almost broke down after he told her what happened to Lisanna.

"So that's what happened between you and the Oracion Seis." Lucy muttered, "No wonder you were so hostile towards them."

"Lisanna was the first person I met that didn't think of me as a monster. I only regret that I didn't let her in when I had the chance." Natsu muttered.

Lucy laced an arm over Natsu's shoulders in a kind of side hug. "I'm sorry I made you bring it up Natsu." she mumbled, stifling a yawn.

"It's fine Luce. Past is the past. I'm sure that Lisanna wouldn't want me to brood over it."

Lucy hummed sleepily in agreement.

"Hey Luce. Can I ask y'ah something?" Natsu asked.

"Sure Natsu. What is it?" the Celestial mage yawned.

"Well...really ever since Levy pieced together who you were and where you were from, I've been curious about somethin'. Y'ah don't have to answer if y'ah don't want to, but would you...would you ever want to go home?"

The pinkette braced himself for an answer…

...but none came.

Lucy's breathing was even, slow, and her body was limp against his side. He wasn't sure how she had done it, but Lucy had fallen asleep while he was talking. The half-Fire Dragon didn't even need to look to know she had a peaceful smile on her face.

Natsu sighed, settled against the tree trunk and wrapped an arm over Lucy's shoulders. The half-Fire Dragon couldn't help but let his thoughts wander back to Tartarous. He doubted that they were gone. Even with the magnitude of the attack he executed, that wouldn't have been enough to destroy them. Tartarous would come back, maybe even some time soon, but when they did cross paths with Natsu once again, would Lucy get caught in the crossfire?

A familiar urge burned in his gut. The urge to run away. Would that be so wrong? If he just left, then none of his friends would get caught up in his problems. That would be a practical way to protect them. Right? So why did that _not_ feel like the right answer?

Maybe this time, running away... _wasn't_ the way to deal with this.

Maybe this time, dealing with his problems alone wasn't the right solution.

Maybe it was because Natsu finally has a group of friends that would stay by him no matter what, whether he's not human or not.

He knew he'd have to tell Lucy the truth sooner or later and he would, but he admittedly was scared to. Lucy would worry about him, he was sure and he didn't want to do that to her.

But that doesn't mean he'd run away.

The pinkette grinned to himself and rested his head against the trunk and peering up at the stars through the budding leaves of the willow tree. He made his choice. He wasn't going to run away from his friends or his problems. Natsu was done running.

Because it was always more fun when they were together.

...

 **A/N: Hooray! NaLu reunion! Didn't I tell you that they were going to reunite soon? And I bet you all thought that I was just going to forget about Lucy's headband :)**

 **Now get ready for the next chapter, I think it's going to be an exciting one.**

 **See y'ah lovely people next chapter!**


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long. I've been suffering from "break-to-school transfer" syndrome and it's been a real dampener on my writing. At least in this story, sadly. I've been messing around with other stories, but for some reason I've got writer's block with this specific story so I'm messing around with other stories I haven't updated in awhile and playing around with some new ideas as some of you probably are already aware of.**

 **Sorry for the inconvenience.**

 **Usagi Tsukino** **: Indeed I do. Just write and write and write. It doesn't have to be perfect at first. Then when you're done writing the outline of it, go back and look it over and flesh it out. That's how I write the chapters. I build the general frame then go back and flesh it out more until I'm satisfied with it. Hope this is helpful :)**

 **Enjoy!**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Lucy felt pleasantly warm. Like she was wrapped in a nice thick blanket sitting by the fireplace. She almost believed that she was back home in her apartment with Levy. But if she was in her apartment, then why could she hear the sounds of flowing water and bird song so clearly?

Chocolate brown eyes peered on a slow flowing river through a loose veil of willow branches.

Her back was leaned against a pleasantly warm tree trunk, but a cool morning breeze lightly brushed the Celestial mage's face, making her shiver slightly. Yet the cold of the wind strangely dissolved quickly back into a comforting warmth.

 _Why am I so warm?_ Lucy thought sleepily.

Lucy attempted to sit up to stretch her sore back, but was stopped by something pulled her back down. At this point, Lucy was fully awake and noticed that Natsu was sitting against the willow tree with her and had one arm looped over her shoulders and the other wrapped across her stomach. At some point during the night, Lucy had slumped and had leaned her full weight on the half-Fire Dragon and he had ensnared her in his arms at some point after.

The blonde noticed that she had done something similar when she attempted to move her right arm only to find that the limb had fallen asleep with it being pinned between the weight of the sleeping half-Fire Dragon and the tree.

Faintly, she remembered looping it over his shoulders at some point before they had fallen asleep.

The sun had long since cleared the horizon. The sky had melted from the pleasant shades of pink, orange and purple of a sunrise to a solid baby blue. Lucy groaned inwardly. She had been out here all night and most of the morning. The Celestial Mage settled back against the willow tree once again, it dawning on her that Natsu wasn't going to be waking up any time soon as heavy of a sleeper as he is.

It was nice just relaxing like this, as mildly uncomfortable as Lucy was. Her thoughts slowly shifted to what had happened the night before. The memories were hazy with sleep, but slowly resurfacing. She and Natsu had come down to the river to talk and the conversation had quickly shifted to their pasts. Lucy had told him about her mother and he told her about what he did the seven years after Igneel disappeared.

It hurt to talk about her mother and admittedly she almost teared up several times, remembering the time Lucy had spent with her before she passed away a little over seven years ago. But at the same time it felt liberating to talk to someone about it.

Natsu had appeared to feel the same way. He was hesitant to talk about his past at first, but once he started talking he kept going even if he was on the brink of tears a time or two. Lucy was glad that he decided to confide in her and actually open up. But, something told Lucy he was still hiding something from her. Not that he didn't have the right to. Everyone is entitled to their secrets, but there was clearly something bothering him and the fact that he refused to tell her what it was made her worry. Lucy's thoughts wandered to the new wound in Natsu's side. She didn't buy that story about falling down a ravine. Natsu _was_ a bit clumsy by nature, but really his clumsiness was mostly his inability to not destroy everything around him in a fight. Lucy had seen how crazy agile he was first hand when they had scaled Mount Hakobe. If he could go up and down the frighteningly uneven terrain of that mountain so easily, than a ravine would be no problem for him even if someone pushed him in.

Next to her Natsu snored lightly, drawing Lucy's attention from her thoughts to the sleeping half-Fire Dragon next to her. He mumbled something in his sleep that Lucy didn't catch and tightened his grip around her waist.

Lucy's eyes automatically widened for a moment before a small, fond smile tugged at Lucy's lips. _I wonder what he's dreaming about._

However, Lucy's fond smile almost literally melted away when Natsu suddenly started heating up at an alarming pace. She gasped in surprise at how uncomfortably warm the pinkette was getting so quickly. It was getting unbelievably hot in his grasp and Lucy was surprised her clothes hadn't melted yet, though she was certain that if Natsu's temperature kept climbing like it was, that possibility wasn't impossible. The bad news didn't stop there. Just under the skin of Natsu's arm, Lucy could see the ruby scales like a red sea, fading in and out repeatedly, only being visible for enough time to catch the light of the sun.

The half-dragon's eyes were still shut, but his peaceful expression had contorted into something that was anything but peaceful. There was only one thing that could be wrong.

Natsu was having a nightmare.

Stroking his hair wouldn't do much right now, he was too deep into the dream. The only solution was to wake him up and fast, but Lucy was lost as to what to do. She was no stranger to his midnight episodes, but she's never seen it get this bad before. Her first instinct was to slap him to wake him up, but as surprising as it may sound, the idea of physically harming the half-Fire Dragon was one that made Lucy subconsciously cringe.

So instead, she firmly grasped his shoulder with her left hand and started to shake him. Natsu grunted in his sleep, but didn't awaken.

"Natsu! Wake up! It's just a bad dream! Whatever you're dreaming about isn't real. You hear me! It _isn't_ real!" Lucy assured frantically.

This had a more potent effect on the pinkette. His eyelids fluttered a little and Lucy was sure his ears had twitched. Even better, his scales started to disappear and his body temperature dropped. However, he still was asleep.

"Natsu, please wake up!" she pleaded.

With a final rough shake the half-dragon's onyx eyes shot wide open and he bolted upright, his back unusually rigid. For a second he looked through Lucy with glassy eyes, the remanents of whatever nightmare he had been experiencing still fresh in his mind. For a moment, his face froze in a fearful expression until he realized that it was just Lucy looking back at him and not whatever monster he was dreaming of.

"...L-Lucy…?"

"Natsu, are you okay? What were you dreaming about?" the Celestial Mage asked gently.

Lucy watched as Natsu's surprised and fearful expression was quickly masked by a fake smile that she had hid behind so many times herself. He was trying to hide it.

"It's nothing Luce. Heh. I don't even remember it." he said, laughing a little.

Lucy's brow furrowed. "You're lying Natsu. Stop lying to me."

Surprise flickered across the half-Fire Dragon's face. "L-Lucy, I'm not lying."

"Then what's with that fake smile?"

Natsu gasped lightly in surprise. He must not have been expecting her to see through him this quickly, if not at all. The half-Fire Dragon squirmed noticeably under her unwavering gaze. Lucy saw him glance up at her every now and again, but he couldn't hold eye contact with the Celestial Mage for more than two seconds. However, he was no longer wearing the fake smile that Lucy was all too familiar with using herself.

Finally, she spoke, breaking the uneasy silence between them.

"If you don't want to talk about it right now, I understand. But don't lie about it to my face. You'll just end up hurting yourself." Lucy whispered.

Natsu chuckled lightly. "Was I really that obvious?"

The blonde mage couldn't hold back a small snort and a smile. "I could see right through you."

"Aw man. Well it's not fair, 'cause it's you I'm up against." Natsu joked.

She raised an eyebrow. "Huh? How is it unfair because you're up against me?"

"Because I can't hold a poker face around you!" He protested, swinging his arms dramatically.

Lucy snorted again. "You have a poker face? Seriously? That I find hard to believe. You're as easy to read as an open book."

"Only around you!" Natsu whined, pulling at his hair, "Grr! What do you do to me Luuuiigiii!"

A vein pulsed in Lucy's head. "ARE YOU REALLY DOING THAT AGAIN!?"

Natsu flinched from her loud voice but still laughed. "You're still weird Lucy."

" _I'm_ weird? Have you seen the way you eat?" Lucy asked, a small smile playing on her face, "Your stomach is practically a bottomless food pit."

"Hey! That's mean!" Natsu then patted his stomach, "Speaking of which, I'm starving! Let's go get food!"

Lucy smiled and laughed. "Looks like you're feeling better."

"Was I ever sick?" Natsu asked, looking a little confused.

"I don't know. You don't tell me a lot." Lucy said, carefully taking her arm back and rolling it to wake it up.

"...There isn't much to tell Luce." Natsu said in an obvious attempt to shrug her off.

The Celestial Mage's eyes narrowed skeptically, but she said nothing and stood up, stopping for a moment to brush the grass from her skirt.

"Well, let's go get some breakfast. Maybe then we can discuss our next step in getting your wings." Lucy said, moving on to the next topic.

Natsu looked up at her in surprise. She guessed he assumed she was going to press the topic more and was shocked that she wasn't. Eventually, he stood up and took her hand with the same large, grin on his face that he showed her the first time they met and pulled her back towards Ruba.

For a moment, things felt like they were back to normal between them. But Lucy knew Natsu's smile. And this grin didn't look natural. Instead, it looked forced.

…

It turns out that Lucy and Natsu had unintentionally worried their friends by disappearing without a trace the previous night. All of them were milling around the front of the Sabertooth guild, looking around and scanning the crowds. Wendy and Carla were the first to spot them and when they did, visible relief washed over Wendy's young face as she pushed passed the crowd and made her way to them, Carla following from above.

"Lucy-san! Natsu-san! Where were you? We've been looking all over for you!" the half-Sky Dragon said, "We were worried something happened to you when we couldn't find you last night!"

"We were at the river last night talking and we kind of dozed off." Lucy explained, laughing a little.

Carla scoffed comically and shook her head. "Only you two would fall asleep at a river."

"Well, we did. So where can we get food? I'm starving!" Natsu complained.

"We should let everyone know that you're both okay first." Wendy said, heading back to the large building.

The pinkette groaned but didn't protest and simply followed the young girl, leaving Lucy with little choice but to follow as well. The Fairy Tail group was standing outside the Sabertooth guild hall with Yukino and Minerva. All of them wearing morose expressions. Until they saw Wendy emerging from the crowd with Lucy and Natsu in tow. Happy was the first to attack the two with a hug, literally crying with relief. Since the flying blue cat was unable to capture both Natsu and Lucy in a hug, he hugged them one at a time. Lucy was surprised at how strong the cat's hug was and even more so that Happy was this worried about them at all, especially her since he took every chance he could to make a wise crack about her.

Erza was next to confront them. She however was a little more annoyed than Happy was.

"Natsu, Lucy, where were you two?" she asked, her voice hard.

Lucy paled. "We were at the river...Erza."

"Oh? Then why didn't you seek us out last night?"

"We fell asleep…"

The redhead suddenly took on an almost cat-like expression, any anger she had been expressing towards the pair immediately gone.

"You...fell asleep...together?"

Natsu grinned. "Yep! Best sleep I've had in awhile."

Lucy cringed. It was unnoticeable to the untrained eye, but it was still there. Natsu was leaving out that he had had a horrible nightmare that scared him so much that it almost made his scales come out. The blonde had a feeling he was just trying to protect everyone from his own problems, but it worried her that he refused to confide in anyone about what happened after they were separated.

"You and Lucy fell asleep together? Man, I wish I saw that." Gray laughed.

The ice-mage had joined Erza moments before with Juvia right behind him. She started muttering something under her breath, but Lucy guessed she was having a fantasy about her and Gray falling asleep together judging from the love-struck expression she wore.

Yukino and Minerva were last to join them, apparently wondering where everyone was going. Yukino's usual blank expression melted into relief and Minerva remained stoic but her eyes still shone with the same relief as reflected on Yukino's face.

"Lucy-sama! Are you alright! Where were you?" Yukino exclaimed.

The blonde sweat-dropped. "Why is everyone so worried? It's not like this was the first time Natsu and I have gone somewhere without telling you."

"Yeah, but after what had happened to you both, I can understand their concern." Minerva commented.

Lucy raised an eyebrow at the half-god's word choice. "Both of us? What happened to both of us?"

Minerva shrugged. "You both have a tendency to vanish without warning apparently. I didn't understand before, but now I do."

The Celestial mage felt a twinge of betrayal. First Loke was hiding something from her, then Natsu, and now Minerva as well. The half-god may have a world class poker face, but Lucy saw panic flash across her face when she questioned her wording. The expression only graced Minerva's face for less than a second, but Lucy still saw it. Everyone was hiding something from her and it hurt that they didn't appear to trust her enough to tell her.

"Why so glum Lucy?" Gray asked.

Lucy felt a hurt scowl relax on her face. She didn't even realize her face had contorted into such a telltale expression and was silently kicking herself for letting it happen without her knowledge.

The blonde quickly plastered on a fake smile. "Nothing, just not fully awake yet."

Suspicion hung on the ice mage's face, but he said nothing. Lucy doubted he bought that lie she had told him. But it still bothered her that everyone seemed to be keeping secrets from her.

"Luce...is everything okay?" Natsu asked, sounding concerned.

"Yeah. Everything's fine apparently." she said, an unintentional edge on her voice.

Lucy felt the half-Fire Dragon flinch next to her, but he said nothing more. Uneasy silence hung over the group until Wendy spoke up.

"Um...Lucy-san. How about I check out your wounds? I want to make sure they're healing properly and aren't infected."

"Sure Wendy. Thank you."

Yukino nodded. "I will lead you to the infirmary. You can perform your exam in private there Wendy-sama."

The half-Sky Dragon's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "Y-You don't have to refer to me that way Yukino-san! Just Wendy is fine."

The white-haired Celestial mage nodded, acknowledging the young girl's wishes and turned back to the Sabertooth guild hall. Lucy and Wendy followed Yukino inside with Carla not far behind. The Celestial mage felt eyes burning into her back as she walked. Eyes that Lucy was certain belonged to Natsu.

…

"This is the infirmary. Do what you must Wendy." Yukino informed as she held open the infirmary door.

The half-Sky Dragon looked around the room, her expression wide with wonder.

"Wow! It's so much bigger than the infirmary in Cait Shelter!"

Carla nodded in agreement. "It certainly is. Thank you for letting us use it Yukino."

"Yeah! Thank you Yukino-san." Wendy grinned.

A small smile appeared on Yukino's face. "You're welcome. I will be out here if you need anything."

With that, the white-haired Celestial Mage closed the door, leaving Lucy alone with Wendy and Carla.

"L-Lucy-san?" Wendy asked, "I'm going to have to ask you to show me your injuries. All of them."

Reluctantly, Lucy nodded and set to work unwrapping the bandages around her wounds. With the exception of the wound in her back, all of the wounds that Jasper had inflicted upon Lucy had almost healed. Even so, Lucy wore the bandages out of concern of the wounds somehow reopening and getting infected, but also so she wouldn't have to look at the angry pink marks in her skin.

The wound in her ankle was small, but if you looked closely at it, you could see that her ankle had been punctured all the way through. Her bone had been missed, but the damage that was done to was painful enough. Yesterday, in her hurry to get to the diner, Lucy had neglected to wrap the wound in her shoulder and once she had returned to Yukino's apartment, she had once again neglected that task upon hearing Natsu shout her name all the way at the Sabertooth guild and had bolted out of the apartment to see if her ears had been deceiving her or not.

It was a mark that Lucy didn't much like to look at. Every time she looked at it, she was reminded of the guilt filled expression that Natsu wore when she first received the jagged wound and now the line that had been carved through her flesh that connected both punctures and dragged to the base of her neck would remind her of the psychotic woman who had been hired by her own father to return her home, but had decided not to do so without giving her a beating first.

And that brought Lucy to the final and largest of the three main wounds. The incomplete Blood Eagle emblem that Jasper had been carving into her back. Lucy shivered as she remembered the sting of the metal dragging through her skin and how precise Jasper had been when carving it. Like she had done it a thousand times and was willing to do it a thousand more. Thankfully, though the wound was deep, it had healed well and had almost completely disappeared, leaving a faint pink outline on her back. Thankfully, Lucy's shirt was low enough that she didn't need to take it off to show Wendy the wound.

The Celestial mage looked over her shoulder at Wendy as she showed her that wound. The little girl's face was pale with shock, her deep brown eyes locked on the unfinished outline of a spread eagle that had been engraved on Lucy's back.

"L-Lucy-san...does it hurt?" Wendy asked, lightly tracing her fingers over it.

The blonde shook her head. "It did when it was still a fresh wound, but it's fine now."

Wendy let out an almost silent sigh of relief. "And at least it won't scar. I would have thought that a wound this deep would have scarred like the one on your shoulder."

Lucy shrugged. "I got lucky I guess. Jasper didn't dig as deeply as she did on my shoulder when she did this."

"That still looks painful." Carla commented.

"Like I said, it doesn't hurt anymore." Lucy snapped.

The white furred cat's eyes widened in surprise at the sharpness in Lucy's voice. Immediately the Celestial Mage felt bad for snapping at Carla. She wasn't sure why she did, but that didn't stop her from feeling awful about it.

"I-I'm sorry Carla. I didn't mean to snap."

Carla said nothing and continued to stare at Lucy with an almost distant look in her eyes that made the Celestial mage shiver.

"Um...i-if it's okay. I'd like to complete the healing process of your wounds."

"Oh yes please." Lucy sighed.

A seafoam green glow surrounded Wendy's tiny hands as she worked on healing Lucy's wounds. First, the half-Sky Dragon started working her magic on Lucy's back. The magic felt warm and cold at the same time as it tingled across Lucy's back, stitching her skin back together. The feeling was strange, but Lucy didn't complain.

"So what happened between you and Natsu last night?" Carla asked.

Lucy's eyes widened in surprise. "Not much. We just talked."

"About what?"

"...Our pasts."

"Your pasts? Is that all?"

"Carla.." Lucy started, "What happened to Natsu while I wasn't here?"

The white furred cat went silent. Lucy felt sadness settle in her stomach once again. Her friends were hiding things from her once again. What had happened that was so terrible that they're all purposefully leaving her out of the loop?

"Something bad." Carla said simply, "It isn't something that Natsu is comfortable talking about just yet and we respect that. But the main reason why Natsu is keeping it secret is because he knows you will find a way to blame yourself for what had happened."

"I get that it's something he doesn't want to talk about, but I just don't like that everyone is lying to my face about it."

"We don't mean to lie to you Lucy, but really what happened is as hard to explain as it is to think about. I'm positive Natsu will tell you in time."

Lucy hung her head, her bangs shadowing her eyes. "How do you know that?"

"Carla has the gift of future sight." Wendy said, completing her healing, "With it, she can see bits and pieces of the future."

"It's not that clear an image, but I clearly see Natsu telling you what happened some time in the near future."

The blonde mage remained silent, not sure how to respond to what she had heard. However, it did bring her relief to hear that Natsu won't keep this secret from her forever.

As she was thinking that, Wendy began checking over the wound in Lucy's ankle.

"Wow Lucy-san, your healing rate is amazing. The wound is already perfectly healed."

Lucy smiled. "That's a relief."

Finally, the wound that Lucy would be seeing for the rest of her life. The wound in her shoulder. In a strange way, she didn't mind seeing it, for much of the same reason why she didn't mind the first scar. It was a reminder that she stood up for something she believed in and if you think about it like that, then having a visible scar wasn't so bad.

"Lucy…" Wendy trailed sadly.

"I know Wendy." the Celestial mage said.

"I-I'm sorry. I can't do anything….it's too deep."

Lucy smiled understandingly. "It's okay Wendy. Don't worry about it."

The half-Sky Dragon hesitantly nodded, as if not sure if it was really okay or not, but quickly moved on.

"Do you have any other wounds that need attention Lucy-san?"

The Celestial mage shook her head. "Thankfully no. The rest healed up on their own a long time ago."

Wendy smiled. "Then I guess we're done."

"That was quick." Lucy grinned.

"That's always a good thing." Wendy grinned, "And Lucy-san. We don't mean to be keeping secrets from you, but really this isn't something any of us have liberty to talk about. If you want to hear about it, the person you should ask is Natsu-san, but let him tell you in his own time. He'll tell you when he's ready to talk about it, I'm sure of it."

Lucy smiled. "You're right Wendy. Geez. I don't know why I was doubting everyone for a minute there. I feel stupid."

"You aren't stupid Lucy. You're doubt was justified." Carla assured, "Now we should get down there. I'm sure at this rate Natsu and Gray are at each other's throats again."

"Knowing Natsu, he's picking a fight right now." Lucy laughed.

Wendy laughed too and opened the door and left with Carla in tow. The sound out people talking over each other flowed through the opening. If she listened carefully enough, Lucy could hear the voices of her friends among the chaos. A smile had formed on Lucy's lips. She missed this. She missed being with her friends. She missed the adventures. Lucy never wanted this to change. She never wanted the adventures to end.

But her father wasn't going to allow her to adventure. He had already sent Blood Eagle after her. What'll stop him from sending someone even more ruthless. Lucy probably would be lucky to get nothing more that cuts and a couple scars. But what if the next people her father sends after her didn't try to lure her away from her friends this time? What if, they just attacked? What if they killed everyone who got in their way?

The smile on Lucy's face melted. She couldn't let that happen. There may be no guarantee that that would happen, but it wasn't a gamble she was willing to take.

…

 **A/N: I'm so sorry this chapter took so long or if it sucked. I feel that some of the monologues were repeatitive. But I hope this was worth the wait because I've got some special things planned for the next chapter that I think you'll like :)**

 **Next chapter I'm going to explain what happened in Natsu's nightmare, so don't think I threw that in there just because.**


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: Chapter 33! I've got something special planning that I think you all are going to like a lot.**

 **Sorry this took so long. Writing this has been a herculean effort and I've been trying to update some of my other stories. I'm actually trying to work on a chapter of "The One Magic is Meant for Two". Emphases on 'trying'. I know exactly where I want to take that story, but I don't know** _ **where**_ **to take it.**

 **dragonhuntingslayer** **: Okay, I understand that situation. I've been there myself a few times XD**

 **And thank you for the nice review :)**

 **Usagi Tsukino** **: Here you go! Next time, please be patient. Not bashing you or anything negative, but I do other things besides writing and my writing process is a bit slow sometimes :-/**

 **Well. Right now this is the only story I should be thinking about, so I won't to a mega Author's note here.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Natsu felt guilty.

He had lied to Lucy's face and worse yet, she totally saw through him. Not just once, but twice. The half-Fire Dragon guessed he shouldn't have thought of Lucy as someone who was easy to lie to. Especially since they had spent so much time together that she probably picked up every single little thing about him without even realizing it. Okay, maybe he's exaggerating a little bit, but the prospect wasn't far from the truth and it didn't help that Natsu couldn't lie to her for embers.

Natsu munched half-heartedly on a chicken leg at Sabertooth's bar while the Fairy Tail group chatted next to him. Honestly, he wasn't overly fond of this place. It was different from Fairy Tail and not in a very good way. Fairy Tail was warm and inviting while Sabertooth felt stiff and restricting and those were two feelings that Natsu didn't like. If Erza hadn't threatened to pummel him into the ground, he would have gone outside and stayed there until it was time to leave.

But the atmosphere of the guild was farthest from what was currently occupying his thoughts. The nightmare that he had had the night before still felt fresh in his mind. Unfortunately for him, Natsu remembered it in detail. The nightmare had been about his imprisonment in Tartarous. He dreamt he was there again and he was truly unable to escape. Natsu's hair was still inky black, signalling that he was still human, but then it suddenly turned pink again in the blink of an eye. Unbelieveable pain wretched through Natsu's body as the anti-Ether attacked the magic in his body. The half-Fire Dragon was unable to choke back a wail of pain. Mard Geer seemed to magically appear before him. The creepy smile on the demon's face still sent shivers down Natsu's spine as Mard Geer once again speared Natsu through with his thorns, drawing the half-Fire Dragon's blood onto the scarlet covered book much to Natsu's dismay. As soon as the first drop hit the cover, Natsu felt a terrifyingly familiar presence emanating from the pages of the book. Mard Geer got thrown back and into darkness, but even though he no longer held the book, it still hovered in midair as if it were being cradled by the very wind itself. The book fell open and the pages began to flip wildly, the demonic presence ever increasing. A red-orange magic seal lit up above the book before shattering into a million splintered pieces of magic and disappearing.

Then there was a laugh. A bone-chilling laugh that still echoed through Natsu's head and it was so painstakingly familiar but he couldn't figure out where he had heard it before. And the half-Fire Dragon had a feeling he didn't want to remember.

A shadow emerged from the book, but Natsu could practically hear the wicked smile on the shadow's face as it snaked out of the book and towards him, still laughing wickedly.

The half-Fire Dragon desperately tried to move, but found himself unable to as much as twitch his finger let alone run and the thorns pinning him to the wall weren't helping matters much either. The shadow now stood before him, reaching out with a clawed hand. It drew closer until it was just a breath away from the half-Fire Dragon's throat when an ear shattering roar shook the ground, followed by a huge jet of fire that obliterated most of the wall behind Natsu. The shadow screamed and recoiled as it made a grab for Natsu's neck. As it recoiled, one of it's claws raked across the side of his neck. The exact place where Natsu bore a long, narrow scar that usually was out of sight, hidden under his scarf.

The whole building seemed to have crumbled, allowing Natsu to see the sky above. But the sky wasn't the only thing that greeted him. Hovering above the ground was Igneel, the King of Fire Dragons, and Natsu's father. Natsu felt relief and amazement wash through him, but it was quickly swept away when he saw the expression the huge red dragon wore. In all his life, Natsu had never seen his father so angry. He had seen him angry, but Igneel looked like he was flat out ready to kill someone. But thankfully, the Fire Dragon's eye wasn't trained on Natsu, but on the shadow before him.

The shadow seemed to seeth in Igneel's presence, it hissed something. And Natsu understood it.

 _You cannot stop me Igneel. This boy's body will be my new vessel._

Igneel growled. It was a low growl that shook the very earth. Most men would be wetting their pants in fright, hearing such a thing, but the shadow was unfazed.

" _Get your grubby claws away from my son, you demon!"_ Igneel shouted.

The shadow hissed a laugh. _It's already too late_.

Natsu didn't understand what the shadow had meant until it _was_ too late. The shadow had grabbed hold of what felt like his very soul, slowly and very painfully consuming it. The pinkette couldn't bite back his screams of pain. Igneel roared in retribute above him and suddenly the pain had disappeared.

The scene had shifted. Now Natsu was standing on a hill overlooking a valley. The ruins of a town lay spread out before him, buildings smoldering in orange-blue flames as screams of terror and pain rang from the valley as people tried to escape the hungry flames as they consumed everything in their path that could burn.

From the hill, Natsu could see people running around like rats in the village. Hopelessly trying to put of the fires, but all their efforts panned out to nothing as no amount of water seemed to quench the flames.

Natsu felt a warm wetness clinging to his hands, looking down, he was greeted by clawed hands that dripped with crimson red. It took him one horrible moment to realize they were his hands.

 _His_ hands.

Covered in the blood of innocent people.

Natsu's head snapped up again to the village, but it was gone. Replaced by a field of charred and bloody bodies, all of them bearing marks that undoubtedly came from Natsu's own hands.

Voices rang in his head, chanting; monster, freak, abomination, and demon over and over and over.

Thankfully at this point, Lucy drew him from this hell. When he first awoke and looked at Lucy, all he say were the hollow eyes of a corpse. For that brief second in time, Lucy looked like one of the long dead. The image thankfully cleared itself from his mind a second later and Natsu was greeted by the face of Lucy, who very much alive. It took all of Natsu's willpower not to glomp the Celestial mage with a hug and insist on never letting go. Instead he masked it with a smile, but once again Lucy saw straight through him. So instead, he pretended not to remember what the dream was about. Thankfully, Lucy dropped the topic.

Whether it was out of respect for him not wanting to talk about it, or she believed him, he wasn't sure, but he was just glad he didn't have to talk about that dream.

I wasn't like it made any sense to him any way.

Deep down, Natsu was thankful to Lucy for waking him up when she did. He almost believed that that nightmare was true. That his friends didn't come to his aid, he didn't escape, and that demon was released. And most importantly, he didn't really find Lucy.

But something about that dream didn't feel right. Igneel told Natsu when he was really young that all dreams are just patchwork quilts of memories and most of it consisted of things he had never witnessed before. Or at least he didn't remember them if he did.

His hand drifted under his scarf to the thin scar that ran along his neck. In his dream, the shadow gave him the same scar in the same place. Even Natsu could figure out that it wasn't a coincidence.

"Yo flame-for-brains. Whatch'a lookin' so down about?" Gray asked, drawing Natsu out of his thoughts.

Natsu turned his head to face the ice-maker mage. "Nothin'. Just thinkin'."

"How's that workin' for y'ah?"

The half-Fire Dragon sighed. "I just remembered why I don't do that."

Gray snickered. "What're you thinking about anyway?"

"None of your buisness, ice princess." he said, shooting a glare at the mage

"You lookin' for a fight cotton-candy head?" the ice mage growled, glaring back.

"So what if I am? I could beat you any day of the week y'ah half-wit snowman!"

A shiver of fear ran up Natsu's spine as he felt eyes burning holes in the back of his head. He suddenly had the feeling that he shouldn't be picking a fight here and now. Gray seemed to get the same feeling.

"Y-You know what? Rain check on that?" Gray asked.

"Y-Yeah.."

"Good. I'm glad you two decided to not fight." Erza grinned, with an underline of a threat in her voice.

Natsu and Gray nodded quickly, both shaking in terror of the redhead. It didn't take a genius to know that the Titania was the one glaring at them and both boys knew better than to get on her bad side. A small laugh however called Natsu's attention.

"You two seem to be getting along well." Lucy joked.

Natsu immediately brightened up. "Lucy! So has Wendy givin' you the green light?"

The half-Sky Dragon nodded, standing next to the blonde mage. "Yep! She's all clear. Her wounds have healed excellently and as long as she doesn't get into any bad fights, she won't have to worry about opening them again."

"That's great!"

The blonde mage nodded in agreement. "So when do we plan on setting off again?"

"Um...haven't really thought that far ahead." Natsu admitted sheepishly.

Lucy laughed. "You _never_ think that far ahead."

"Hey! I just have never had to think beyond one day before. It's hard! How do you do this Lushi?" the pinkette whined.

"Welcome to civilized life." the Celestial Mage grinned.

Suddenly, any chatter that had even been present in the guildhall silenced. Natsu wondered what could have caused that, until he caught on to a familiar scent.

The scent of another half-dragon.

Or rather, half-dragons.

"Oi! Why do I smell half-dragons here!"

The half-Fire Dragon felt Lucy tense a little next to him. He was about to ask her what was wrong when a pair of men forced their way to them. Both men smelled heavily of half-dragon. The first man, the blonde man looked at Lucy for a moment before his eyes flickered to Natsu. Instinctively, Natsu felt his eyes narrow. There was another, black-haired man behind the blonde man, but he hung back a little more. However he still looked between Lucy and Natsu like he was trying to figure something out.

The blonde walked out of the crowd, his partner staying at the edge of the crowd. And then he slung an arm over Lucy's shoulders like he and her were all buddy-buddy. Natsu felt his blood boil with anger and maybe, _just maybe_ , jealousy.

"Hey Lucy. Who's the cotton-candy head?" his eyes flickered over to Wendy, "And who's the kid?"

Lucy leaned away a little. "His name isn't 'cotton candy head', Sting. That's Natsu and the 'kid' is Wendy. Can you get your arm off me?"

The half-Fire Dragon fought back a victorious smirk at Lucy's words as this 'Sting' character recoiled a little in surprise. Unfortunately, the blonde jerk still kept his arm around Lucy.

"Natsu and Wendy, huh? Are they some of your half-dragon friends."

"Yes. Yes we are." Natsu said stepping in, "Lucy said to get your filthy arm off her. You'd be smart to listen."

A flicker of surprise darted across Sting's face, but disappeared as quickly as it appeared. Sting sighed a little and his arm slid off Lucy's shoulders and he sauntered over to Natsu, regarding him with an air of amusement that made Natsu want to burn him to ashes right then and there.

"So you're the famous Natsu Dragneel I've heard so much about." Sting said mockingly.

"Yeah, and who exactly are you?" Natsu demanded, his eyes narrowing.

"They're Sabertooth's Twin Dragons, Sting and Rogue." a little maron cat explained proudly, "The two of them put together are stronger than anything."

"You're not nearly as impressive in person as Lucy made you out to be. You don't even look like you could handle another mage let alone dragons like Rogue and I." the blonde half-dragon drawled.

Natsu raised an eyebrow. "Why the heck would I want to take on a dragon?"

Sting smirked. "To get stronger. Why else? Strength is essential to surviving as a half breed in this world."

The pinkette's eyes narrowed. "You can get stronger in other ways, y'ah know. If you said you can 'handle dragons'. Then what dragons did you handle? It's not like you can throw a dart and hit a dragon these days."

"Our fathers."

The half-Fire Dragon's eyes widened.

"Your fathers?" he growled, "You _murdered_ your own _fathers_? That's monstrous!"

"We're half-dragons. We're monsters by nature."

Natsu shook his head. "Half-dragons are a lotta things, but we ain't monsters. Not unless we choose to be."

"So are you claiming not to be a monster?"

"I know I'm not." Natsu said confidently.

"I'm sure that's not what other people think."

However, Natsu wasn't listening to the blonde half-dragon. "But you two...you two definitely are monsters. But pretty dam weak ones if you were so desperate to get power that you'd axe your own fathers."

The blonde half-dragon scoffed. "What? Do you think you're stronger than us too?"

Natsu smirked confidently. "I could take both of you on all by myself, no problem."

Sting looked over his shoulder, his partner nodded and walked up next to him. Rogue still looked indifferent about the situation.

"Let's just get this over with." he muttered, "I don't want to waste my time with a trivel fight."

Natsu chuckled. "So when are we going to go at it? I'm all fired up for this."

"How about here and now?"

"Works for me." the half-Fire Dragon smirked.

Sting returned Natsu's smirk, allowing pure white scales to rise to the surface of his skin, Rogue did something similar, but his scales was black with undertones of swirling violets. Natsu almost wanted to laugh and manifested his own ruby red scales over his skin.

All three half-Dragon's tensed, ready to pounce on the enemy and tear them to shreds. Until they were stopped dead in their tracks by razor sharp sword points, that were level with their noses.

"Hold it right there!" Erza declared, standing between the half-dragons, "You three will not fight here while I'm around."

"Yo lady! You shouldn't try to get in Sting-kun's way. He'll flatten y'ah." A little maron cat claimed.

Erza's head snapped in the cat's direction and instantly the cat froze and started shivering in fright.

"N-Nevermind, miss." the cat stuttered.

Natsu half expected Sting to back talk Erza, but he seemed to have gotten caught up in whatever unholy expression the Titania was making at the moment and was paralyzed with fear. Even his partner looked a little paler than normal.

"If you three absolutely must do combat, then find a place where you won't cause damage to this city." the redhead declared.

"T-That shouldn't be a problem." the black-haired half-dragon stuttered.

"Y-Yeah. Jiemma would get mad at us if he came back from his trip to see we've wrecked the guildhall." Sting agreed hastily, muttering a small 'again' at the end.

"Then go! And don't kill each other!" Erza barked, commanding her swords vanish.

The three half-dragons didn't waste another second and hurried out of the Sabertooth guild hall. Natsu was a bit confused. Why were they doing this? Was there really a reason to fight? Natsu did fight a lot, that much is true, but he usually didn't fight pointless battles like this. Yet he felt like he _needed_ to fight these two, to prove some point he didn't quite know himself.

"Kick their butts Natsu!" Happy cheered behind him.

Natsu paused for a moment and looked over his shoulder. The blue cat hovering in the air on his wings and giving the half-Fire Dragon a big thumbs up. Lucy was standing behind him and doing the same thing with a confident smile on her face.

The kind of smile that said: "I've seen you fight a thousand times and I know these chumps have nothing on you". Once again, a comforting warmth spread in his chest. He's felt this before. It was only once, but he'd never forget the feeling.

It was like he ate fire, but not quite. It felt much better than eating fire. Which was surprising because not much can top eating fire. Natsu flashed a quick smile at his friends before leaving the building after Sting and Rogue. It didn't take long for the pinkette to catch up to them, and it took even less time for Sting to start trying to smack talk at him.

"You're lucky you had your friends to bail you out." Sting hissed, "But that won't really matter because no matter where we fight, we're going to beat you, Dragneel. Because we're the strongest half-dragons in the world."

Natsu scoffed lightly. "Let's see if you can walk your talk."

…

The three half-dragons ended up picking the forest by the river bank that Natsu and Lucy spent the night by as their battle ground. There was a huge clearing about a mile into the forest over and past the river bank (A/N: Over the river and through the woods, to grandmother's house we go~. Sorry. Couldn't help myself) and was roughly as big as a stadium floor.

Natsu could feel his instincts itching to fight. They were in his element. At this point, Natsu felt like he had home-field advantage. The forest was where Natsu spent the better part of his life. Pretty much, he spent almost his whole life in the woods. In a way it was like coming home for him, even if he never lived in these specific woods. But one thing he learned was that surviving in any forest is the same no matter what. Even if you were in a forest that was full of fire resistant trees.

Okay. Maybe not that last one. But it's usually the same.

Natsu glanced at his competition. He still wasn't sure why he wanted to fight them beyond just being a couple of male half-dragon meeting for the first time. Gajeel wasn't entirely accurate when he told Lucy that half-dragons fight to say 'hello' all those weeks ago. That was true, but really only male and extremely territorial female half-dragons fight when they meet another half-dragon. Depending on the situation, fighting could mean, 'hey! I think you're strong, so I want to test my strength against you!' or 'get the heck off my territory before I kill you' depending on the half-dragon and the situation.

But most times fighting meant 'hello! Nice to meet you!' in a very strange, half-dragon way. It was basically how they got to know each other at first. They measured each other's powers, strengths, strategies, personality, you name it. It's incredible that they can gather so much information about their opponents in such a short time, but maybe that was just how the minds of half-dragons worked around each other.

But Natsu didn't feel like he was trying to say 'hello' to these two. It kind of felt like when he fought Gajeel. He felt threatened. Not that he was believing that these two half-bakes were stronger than him. No, that wasn't it. He felt like they were encroaching on his territory. Like they were trying to take what was rightfully his.

Natsu wasn't sure why he felt like Sting and Rogue were invading his territory. He didn't exactly have any territory to speak of. Or at least he didn't think he did. But there was something about the way that Sting was cozying up to Lucy that really made Natsu's fire burn in a bad way.

He felt that too when Gajeel was a little too close to the blonde Celestial mage for Natsu's liking.

 _What the heck am I thinking?_ Natsu pondered, scolding himself mentally, _Lucy isn't my territory. She doesn't belong to me! She doesn't belong to anyone!_

And yet the idea that another male half-dragon was close to Lucy made his blood boil regardless of him trying to convince himself that Lucy wasn't his or anyone's.

"You ready to get your butt kicked Dragneel?" Sting asked, confidence oozing from his voice.

Natsu snapped out of his thoughts and smirked at Sting. "Only if you're ready to eat fire the hard way."

"Let's get this over with." Rogue said in a monotone voice.

"Come on Rogue! Don't be such a stick in the mud! Don't you want to fight another half-dragon? Other than me of course."

That finally seemed to make Rogue cave, but that didn't stop him from rolling his eyes and muttering about how childish Sting was before shifting into a battle stance.

"Let's see who's the strongest." Sting smirked, "You or us."

Natsu chuckled. "I'm all fired up."

…

 **A/N: Finally! Geez. I had to rewrite half of this like twice! Sting and Rogue are back and they're about to cross fists with Natsu. I bet you all know what the outcome is going to be ;)**

 **See y'ah all next chapter!**


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the positive reviews on my story. It's good to know that there are still a lot of good people in this fandom because I'm worried about people in the** _ **Fairy Tail**_ **fandom being really toxic to each other and that makes me really sad that there are people who hate on others for no good reason even if they're amazing.**

 **I am kind of surprised that no one has talked about Natsu's nightmare (yet). Or really any of the little-big things I'm hinting here and there, because I've be hinting a lot of really big plot details since at least Chapter 23 (gods, that feels so long ago). Just a friendly heads up.**

 **For this 1-on-2 ("go ahead and try to hit me if you're able~". I really couldn't help myself X3)fight, I might invent some of my own attacks like I did in "The One Magic is Meant for Two" but for Sting and Rogue. Rogue especially since he doesn't have a lot of known attacks. Poor baby. His magic is so cool, yet we don't see a lot of it ;-;**

 **(SPOILER ALERT FOR CHAPTERS 469-471! -)Well. At least he doesn't have mage cancer like canon Natsu (and maybe Laxus) does… oops. Sorry. Spoilers for those of you who haven't gotten that far! Why'd y'ah read this bit anyway? There's a spoiler alert up there ;-) ^^^**

 **But seriously, sorry if this fight is sloppier than my normal fights. I've never written a 1-on-2 fight before….**

 **How does Mashima do this schist? It's hard *whines*.**

 **Anyway...Reviews :3**

 **I'm going to make this a regular thing now. When someone reviews on a recent chapter, I'll reply to the review ^_^**

 **Lyonsgirl** **: Thank you so much! You're so sweet! So as thanks, here's another chapter!**

 **Alaina Kuski** **: Go Natsu! Go! \\(^.^)/ *cheers wildly* *I'm working on using emoticons!***

 **MissyPlatina** **: *gasp* Writing senpai noticed me! :D And ten reviews. HOLY CATNIP! THANK YOU SO MUCH! IF I COULD I WOULD HUG YOU (AND ABOUT A THOUSAND OTHER PEOPLE!), YOU WONDERFUL PERSON!**

 **Usagi Tsukino** **: It's fine. I understand, so don't feel bad about it :)**

 **dragonhuntingslayer** **: Thanks. I try :)**

 **Uchida Akira** **: Who knows? Well, you're about to find out, well I guess you and about a thousand other people ;)**

 **fanficlove2014** **: That's our dorky dragon for y'ah. I can just imagine in canon a few years after the current manga events (after all the craziness is over with Acnologia and Zeref and hopefully everyone survives. Fingers crossed) when he and Lucy are (hopefully) dating and some guy (*cough, cough* dead man walking *cough, cough*) tries to make a move on Lucy and Natsu just gets between them and gets up in that guy's face, death in his eyes (like Future Rogue killing Future Lucy kind of mad) and growls "mine", takes Lucy's hand and walks away with her, resuming acting like a total dork like nothing happened.**

… **Hold up. I'm going to write that. THIS IS GONNA BE A LEGIT CHAPTER PEOPLE! or at least part of one :P**

 **Okay. Long Author's Note over (literally a whole page of me rambling).**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

The whole forest felt like it was holding its breath. It had gone completely silent. All bird song had ceased, no small animals ran around on the forest floor. Every corner of the forest was practically frozen with anticipation. Or at least that's what it felt like to Natsu.

It made sense because three half-dragons were about to go at it. If Natsu were a rabbit or a bird, he'd hightail it out of there too.

He had never really done anything like this before. Set up a fight between him and two people. Sure, he's taken on a lot more than two people just fine on his own, but these two were half-dragons like him. If there was anyone who knew how strong a half-dragon could be, it was him. And on top of that, the half-Fire Dragon has never witnessed them in action before. He doesn't even know what their elements were, but fortunately for him, they had the same problem.

Natsu regarded Sting and Rogue cautiously, but they did not. They regarded Natsu like a cat would a toy, especially Sting. The pinkette wasn't sure whether to feel offended or confident that they were so heavily underestimating him.

Though Natsu was confident that his own strength trumps the Twin Dragons by leaps and bounds, he knew better than to take them lightly.

The atmosphere was so dense that it could be cut with a knife as the three half-dragons stood each other down. Then Sting made the first attack.

" **White Dragon's Roar**!"

Natsu didn't even need to think as he leapt easily over Sting's breath attack. At first he thought he had completely dodged, until Sting redirected his roar like a laser. Right at him.

Flames ignited around Natsu's foot and he swung it down. A hard swipe of Natsu's flame cloaked foot generated a gap in the roar large enough for him to drop through and evade the enemy attack. The pinkettte made a solid landing on the forest floor, but there was another attack waiting for him at ground level.

" **Shadow Dragon's Waxwing Flash**."

An explosion of shadows knocked Natsu backwards, but the half-Fire Dragon caught himself and flipped himself back on his feet with a well-timed backhand spring. When the shadows and dust had cleared, only Sting and Natsu appeared to remain in the clearing.

Until the shadows under Natsu's feet withered and tried to swallow him. The half-Fire Dragon leapt out of the way as Rogue emerged from the shadows with a dead look in his eye that was downright startling. Natsu was indeed startled, but with that startlement, he lashed out and punched Rogue in the face with a **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist** , shouting a swear at the top of his lungs (A/N: The one, true reaction) as Rogue went flying across the clearing. Natsu was immediately thankful that Erza was not in the vicinity. Sting snorted out a laugh even as his partner hit the ground harshly. Even so, Rogue was on his feet again in no time at all and ready to attack again.

"Not bad for an old lizard." Sting mocked.

"Who are you calling old? We're the same age!" Natsu protested.

"Not exactly." the half-White Dragon mocked, rushing at Natsu, " **White Dragon's Cl-**!"

Natsu interrupted Sting's spell. " **Fire Dragon's Roar**!"

Natsu's roar swallowed Sting and flung him back across the clearing. Sting's back hit a tree and the trunk cracked in half. The half-White Dragon tore through several more trees before coming to a stop.

But as Sting flew, Rogue attacked Natsu immediately after.

" **Shadow Dragon's Eclipse Void Blade**!"(- A/N: Not a canon attack. Trademark "Karen Write")

The shadows rose and spun like blades, all of them aimed directly at Natsu. Unfortunately, he couldn't counter the attack as quickly as he did with Sting and was also sent flying across the clearing. However, instead of blasting through tree trunks, Natsu was sent skidding across the ground, leaving a deep trench in the ground.

Rogue came into view, his fist clenched and cocked back, cloaked in withering shadows and aiming directly at the prone half-Fire Dragon.

" **Shadow Dragon's Midnight Knuckle**!" (- A/N: Also trademark "Karen Write")

Natsu gripped the lip of the crater he rested in and hauled his body up, igniting his foot and hitting Rogue in the chin as the pinkette flipped out of the crater. Rogue was sent flying, but Sting was there to take his place just as fast.

The half-Fire Dragon now immediately saw their strategy as he continuously dodged Sting's attempts to hit him. Every time he sent one of them flying, the other would come to take their place. Allowing the first to rest and regain some energy, while Natsu gained none and was slowly worn down.

Sting aimed a punch at Natsu, but the pinkette easily ducked under the half-White Dragon's fist as Sting threw another punch at Natsu.

"Clever." the half-Fire Dragon said simply.

Sting's eyes widened in shock as Natsu punched him hard in the face, sending him flying. However, at that precise moment, Rogue had charged in anticipation for Natsu sending Sting flying across the clearing once again. Sting went flying alright, but the half-White Dragon crashed right into Rogue and knocked him over into an awkward dogpile with his partner.

Natsu didn't waste another second and attacked.

" **Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame**!"

Both half-dragons and a good half acre or so of forest was caught up in the massive attack. When the flames died, about five yards worth of trees were reduced to smoldering ash stocks. Sting and Rogue were tossed haphazardly to what used to be the edge of the clearing, unmoving. For a moment, Natsu thought he won.

Until Sting started laughing.

Slowly, the half-White Dragon pulled himself up. Clothes charred, hair rumpled, but still smirking smugly at the half-Fire Dragon. Rogue pulled himself up as well. He was in a similar state as Sting, but didn't seem at all fazed by it.

"You pack a bigger punch than I thought you did." Sting smirked, brushing some of the ash off his clothes, "This might be a hard fight."

Rogue remained silent.

Natsu frowned. "Did you guys really beat a dragon with that level of power?"

"We didn't just _beat_ our dragons. We _killed_ them."

The half-Fire Dragon gritted his teeth with anger. "Weren't they your parents?"

"That has nothing to do with it."

"That has _everything_ to do with it."

Sting scoffed. "Those old geezers were nothing compared to us. In this world, power is everything and we're stronger than any half-dragon ever born naturally."

"We are natural born half-dragons with lacrama implants." Rogue said, finally speaking, "Our fathers had other half-dragon children before us, but they were weak and perished. Their power was captured in the lacramas that were later implanted in us."

"In other words," Sting said, "we're twice as strong as a natural born half-dragon like you. Well, three times if you count the power we got from slaying our fathers."

Natsu's fist tightened. He still couldn't believe that someone would be so cold-hearted as to murder their own father just for power. The half-Fire Dragon would love nothing more than to see his own father again. Well almost nothing more. There _was_ something more that Natsu loved, but at the moment that was unimportant.

As Sting and Rogue's magical pressure had spiked drastically.

"Now I'll show you the power that kills dragons. **White Drive**."

" **Shadow Drive**."

(A/N: Hard Drive! Sorry. Excuse me. I'll stop now...)

White and black auras whipped around the Twin Dragons, magic pressure building around them so quickly that the air rippled like a mirage. Even from across the way, Natsu could feel the waves of magic coming off the pair, but he didn't show signs of intimidation of any kind. Mostly because he didn't feel any. Something about their power felt a little different than Natsu's. In a way, it almost felt empty and cold when Dragon Magic had always felt warm and filling with a slight edge that made it feel ancient and respectable.

This was missing that edge that made Dragon Magic feel so special.

The edge that made it so powerful.

Sting walked forward, confidence almost pouring from him as heavily as his magic aura.

"Stay back Rogue, I can take this guy on alone."

Natsu's expression remained stoic, his eyes locked on Sting. The half-White Dragon charged. He was faster than he was before, but even so, the half-Fire Dragon didn't budge as Sting threw a punch. Natsu blocked it with his arm, but the attack still came and barely skimmed by his hair.

Unfortunately, Sting had another attack geared up in his other fist.

" **White Dragon's Claw**!"

Sting's fist collided with Natsu's stomach, the force of the blow knocking him back and effectively reopened the wound Mard Geer had left. The force of the blow wasn't enough to knock him off his feet like he thought it would, instead it only made him skid a few feet back. But Natsu felt the distinguished tingle of magic crawl across his skin.

When Natsu had tried to hold his now re-opened wound, but found that he couldn't move his body. A small flash of white light on the pinkette's stomach made him realize that his now limited movement was because of Sting's attack.

Sting laughed. "Having trouble moving Natsu-san? The claw of a White Dragon places a stigma that paralyses anything it marks!"

The blonde half-dragon charged again, white threads of light swirling around him like a personal white hurricane. Time seemed to slow. Natsu's mind was going a million miles a minute. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't put much thought into much of anything. People would think of him as an idiot. And they'd be partly correct. Natsu wasn't very smart academically, but if you put him on the battlefield, he's borderline genius.

An idea popped into the half-Fire Dragon's head and he didn't hesitate to implement it. He focused his fire magic to his core, where the stigma was situated. One thing Sting didn't know, was that as a Fire Dragon, Natsu's flames could destroy anything if he put the effort into it. And that included the stigma.

"This fight is over!"

Sting swung his fist just as the sutra's hold on Natsu snapped. In a second, Natsu had ducked past Sting's fist and landed a hard punch of his own, much to Sting's surprise.

"Y-You moved! How!?" his eyes flickered to the smoke rising from Natsu's chest, "You burned the stigma!?"

A smirk splintered on Natsu's face. "This _old dragon's_ still gotta couple tricks. You're pretty good, I'll admit. But you're not good enough. **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist**!"

Sting skidded back a few feet and had just stopped moving when Natsu bolted forward himself and punched Sting again. Out of the corner of his eye, Natsu saw Rogue get ready to attack him from the other side of the clearing.

" **Fire Dragon's Wing Attack**!"

Natsu grabbed Sting by his vest collar and swung him around towards Rogue as he cast his spell. The half-White Dragon slammed into his partner, followed by a crushing wall of fire that knocked both half-dragons prone. Natsu didn't wait another second before attacking again.

As the Twin Dragons were hastily getting to their feet, Natsu smashed the closest half-dragon -in this case, Rogue was the unfortunate soul- into his partner with brutal force and crashed back into the ground again.

Rogue was the first to get up again.

" **Shadow Dragon's Roar**!"

Flames lit along Natsu's arms as the towering funnel of darkness rolled towards him. It was mere feet away when, without even casting a spell, Natsu punched the attack head on. Just punched it.

The flames cloaking his arms leapt off and burned through Rogue's breath attack until nothing was left.

Suddenly, the magic pressure around Sting grew to almost stifling levels. Natsu's eyes flickered in the half-White Dragon's direction. Twirling tendrils of light were rising around Sting, almost like they were being absorbed by him. Light eventually stopped flowing around him and the blonde was smirking confidently at Natsu before he charged.

As Sting sped towards Natsu, the ground beneath them tore up.

" **White Dragon's Secret Art: Holy Nova**!"

Sting swung his fist at Natsu, the attack exploding towards the half-Fire Dragon. But Natsu caught Sting's fist in his own. The attack did explode around them, but it did neither of them any harm.

Surprise once again made itself present on Sting's face as the dust the attack stirred up cleared.

"Y-You _blocked_ **Holy Nova**?!"

Natsu smirked. "Hate ta break it to y'ah, but the differences between our power is just too great."

The three half-dragons continued to clash, each of them throwing magic, punches and kicks at their opponent. Eventually Natsu stopped thinking and started going to instinct. The whole world melted away until the only thing that felt like it existed was this fight.

Time passed, but Natsu wasn't sure how much. It could have been minutes, or hours, or maybe days. Okay, maybe not the last one, but the half-Fire Dragon wouldn't be surprised if hours had passed by now.

By this point in time, all three half-dragons were starting to feel the true strain of their fight. All of them were breathing just as heavily and Natsu could feel his magic was running low.

But Sting and Rogue were suffering from the same problem as their **Drives** had released not too long ago.

"Heh. You're...pretty tough...Natsu-san." Sting huffed, "No...one's lasted...this...long against...us."

"Yeah…? Well, I...ain't no...one." Natsu quipped.

Sting looked at Rogue and nodded, the half-Shadow Dragon nodded back, understanding whatever unspoken message was being communicated between the two of them. Natsu however, was left out of the loop.

He didn't know what they were planning, but he suspected that they were planning their final attack.

"Looks like...we're...going to...have to go all out...after all." Sting said, gathering light around his hand as he caught his breath, "Let's do this Rogue!"  
Shadows gathered around Rogue's own hand as the Twin Dragons thrusted their glowing hands behind them. Giant jets of magic exploded from behind them, gathering and mixing together into something incredibly powerful.

Natsu immediately understood what they were doing.

Sting and Rogue were doing a **Unison Raid**. An ultimate combination of magic power between two or more people. Natsu had heard of **Unison Raids** , but he's never done or seen one for himself.

The jets of light and shadow condensed into a soft ball sized sphere between Sting and Rogue's hands and they quickly extended it towards Natsu.

" **Holy Shadow Dragon's Flash Fang**!"

The small ball of magic grew into a towering sphere of light and shadows, mixing together and turning a strange blue color. Sting and Rogue threw their fists out in front of themselves and the sphere followed as if pulled by invisible strings, towards Natsu.

Sting and Rogue were about thirty paces from Natsu. It might not sound like a lot of space or a lot of time to dodge out of the way of such a massive attack.

However, Natsu wasn't planning on dodging.

The half-Fire Dragon gathered whatever magic he had left into a single attack. Flames ignited around him in an almost ring like fashion, rising and twirling as his fists ignited in the same way.

" **Fire Dragon's Secret Art: Crimson Lotus Exploding Flame Blade**!"

The spiraling vortex of light and shadow clashed with the obviously smaller vortex of red-orange flames. And the flames blasted through the **Unison Raid** like it wasn't even there and completely dissipated it. The half-Fire Dragon's attack continued to barrel towards the Twin Dragons, who had obviously not anticipated Natsu's action.

A single, huge explosion rocked the forest as Sabertooth's Twin Dragons were swallowed by Natsu's attack. When the flames dispersed, Sting and Rogue were still standing. But then a second ticked by and they fell to the dirt. Defeated.

And maybe unconscious. Natsu didn't know.

The half-Fire Dragon sat down where he was, now also too tired to stand. He felt something wet dripping down his abdomen, the sudden sensation making a shiver crawl up his spine. Glancing down, Natsu suddenly remembered that his wound had been reopened. In the heat of the battle, the pinkette had totally forgotten.

But, thanks to his supernatural healing, the wound had almost clotted. That still didn't make him feel any better since he knew he was going to get an ear-full from Lucy, Wendy, Carla, and maybe Erza.

 _Well, then they shouldn't have let me fight these two_. he mumbled in his mind.

That still rose the question as to why he had been so eager to fight these two. Sure, it was normal for male half-dragons to fight, but he knew he was injured and he should try to avoid fighting if he could.

He could have avoided this, but his pride wouldn't let him. Maybe it was his dragon pride, or that he hated Sting's attitude, or how they seemed proud they killed their fathers with their own hands.

Or maybe it was that he was jealous at how Sting cozied right up to Lucy like he had known her for years.

Natsu couldn't lie to himself anymore. It was definitely the last one. He got jealous and a little territorial. The simple idea of any male half-dragon besides himself or Gajeel being around Lucy made Natsu's blood boil.

Now why was that?

…

 **A/N: I hope I didn't this fight justice because so far this is my all time favorite fight in Fairy Tail. I referenced the manga at a few points and even reread the fight and I almost cried from pride at how kick-butt Natsu was and still is. He beat two Dragon Slayers for the most part on his own, and he held back (he didn't use his Lightning Flame Dragon Mode on Sting and Rogue even though he could have)**

 **Can I just say how much of a shame it is that we haven't seen Holy Nova since the GMG's? It's such a cool spell…**

 **(I love writing Dragon Slayer fights, they have the coolest spells ^-^)**

 **And look at my little dorky dragon! He's finally starting to figure it out! I'm so proud ^-^**

 **If you're curious as to why Natsu is okay with Gajeel hanging around Lucy, it's because Gajeel already has a mate and dragons are the kind of creatures that mate for life.**

 **Just so you know, this arc is going to wrap up soon. Hopefully by Chapter 40, but things are going to get intense for a bit. However, do not fear! I had promised fluff a couple Author's Notes ago and I intend to deliver.**

 **I want to make as much fluff as possible before going into the next arc that I have planned (yes, I do plan my stories sometimes), so I'll happily take suggestions :)**

 **See y'ah all next chapter!**


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: Let's keep this ball rolling with Chapter 35! Thank you for the positive feedback :3**

 **It makes me endlessly happy that people enjoyed my first ever 1-on-2 fight and didn't mind my constant blurbs in the storyline XD**

 **Reviews:**

 **Yomi14** **: Hooray! I found that in a meme once about a year ago and I thought of it while writing that X3**

 **Lyonsgirl** **: Well here's more! :)**

 **NaluhasNashi** **: Oh my gosh. You're a comment ninja again! Sorry, but I don't have a set update schedule. I try to update every week or every other week at the latest but lately my schedule's gotten a bit messy -_-"**

 **13** **: I'm glad I made you laugh (literally my goal in life is to make people laugh X3 Poor kitty though. Have mercy on the cat! XD). I was worried that people would get annoyed by the little interjections into the storyline because I can't keep my big mouth shut for the life of me. I might keep doing that because acting like a dork is fun.**

 **fanficlove2014** **: I'm sure you can write fantastic fights. But I'll give you a (hopefully helpful) tip. A good way to write a fight is to always keep in mind where people are so there isn't any random teleporting or awkward movements and having a general knowledge of how a character fights is helpful too (but you don't have to be an expert). Hope this is helpful and you don't mind me giving advice you didn't ask for ^-^**

 **Usagi Tsukino** **: THANK YOU SO MUCH! WHY ARE WE YELLING!?**

 **kymberleycool** **: ...**

 **Alaina Kuski** **: Go Natsu! :D**

 **RhiannaWilliow** **: Ah! A new victim to drag into this wonderful Hell that is my fanfictions. I feel like a broken record, (but I'll say it a million more times if I have to!) but I am so glad you like my work :)**

 **Uchida Akira** **: Thank you! :D**

 **Enjoy the chapter :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

The fight was taking a while. It had been a couple of hours since Natsu, Sting and Rogue ran off to do battle with each other. If Lucy had been as new to this world of half-dragons as she had been a few weeks ago, she would have been endlessly confused. But she strangely wasn't since she was used to Natsu's shenanigans by now.

Lucy had taken that time to inform the manager of the diner she had temporarily worked at that she would be leaving Roba soon and thus she wouldn't be able to work there anymore. The owner was saddened and said they would miss having Lucy around, but understood.

After that, Lucy returned to the Sabertooth guildhall and sat against the outer wall by the door and waited with Frosh, Happy and Lector for the three half-dragons to return.

For some strange reason, Lucy wasn't worried about Natsu fighting Sting and Rogue alone even though she had witnessed their strength first hand. She believed in Natsu and she expected that he would win no problem.

What she didn't expect was for them to come back laughing and chatting like old friends (A/N: They are old for sure in canon if you know what I mean ;) ).

Sure, they were bruised, battered, and burned, but they were all laughing loudly like they were telling each other the funniest stories ever. And just a couple hours ago they were acting like they wanted to kill each other.

Well, Sting and Natsu were the only ones laughing their heads off. Rogue was watching them with a visible smile on his face and sometimes Lucy could see his mouth move. Sting would then get a little angry (A/N: Because Rogue's right).

The Celestial mage could only guess that he was correcting Sting because he was over exaggerating some facts.

At that time, Gray and Wendy came outside as Lucy got to her feet.

"Hey Lucy, how're-" the Ice mage stopped for a second, "What are they doing?" (A/N: Being huge dorks)

Lucy followed Gray's line of sight to the three half-dragons. Sting and Rogue were now roughhousing. It wasn't very serious though. Mostly pulling hair and maybe the shouting of a few insults that couldn't be heard from this distance. Natsu seemed to be enjoying the show the Twin Dragons were putting on though.

"...I have no idea." Lucy admitted.

"I think they're talking." Happy said.

Lector looked stunned. "What the heck happened between them?"

All eyes turned to Wendy, who looked a little uncomfortable with all the eyes on her.

"W-What?"

"Do you know what might have happened Wendy?" Gray asked.

The blue-haired half-Sky Dragon shifted nervously. "I-It's probably just because they're male half-dragons. Grandine always said that male half-dragons were kind of...strange sometimes."

"That makes sense." Happy shrugged.

(A/N: Seems legit)

"Fro thinks so too!"

Natsu, Sting and Rogue walked up to them, all of them with a smile on their faces even though they looked like they'd been put through the wringer. A flaming one at that. Lucy's attention however, immediately zeroed in on the drying trail of blood coming from the wound on Natsu's stomach. The wound must have reopened during the fight, much to Lucy's subconscious horror.

"So? Who won?" Lector asked, eager to hear the result.

The three half-dragons swapped a look before laughing.

"Natsu won by leaps and bonds." Sting laughed, jabbing a thumb at the half-Fire Dragon beside him, "Sorry Lector, but he's too strong."

"Oh no! You're all hurt!" Wendy exclaimed, "Natsu-san! You opened your wound again! I told you to be careful! Now it could get infected!"

The pinkette chuckled with embarrassment. "Sorry Wendy. We got a little rough."

"A little?" Gray scoffed, "We could feel you three going at it from here."

However the three male half-dragons didn't really hear him since much to everyone's surprise, Wendy was dragging them all off to the medical bay while politely scolding them for being reckless.

Lucy couldn't help but laugh a little when she saw Gray's surprised expression. Lector however, looked like he was going to cry.

"What's wrong Lector?" Lucy asked gently.

The little maroon cat sniffed sadly as he rubbed his eyes with his paws. "S-Sting-kun is the strongest half-dragon ever! How could he lose?"

The Celestial mage smiled sympathetically. "Losing is part of learning."

Lector looked up at Lucy with watery eyes. "Huh?"

"It's like making a mistake. When you make it, you learn from it. The same goes with Sting. He lost, so now he can learn from the mistakes he might have made. Then maybe next time, he'll be even stronger." Lucy assured.

Thankfully, Lector did indeed looked reassured by Lucy's words.

"Y-Yeah. You're right Lucy-san! Now Sting-kun can get even stronger!" the maroon cat declared, wiping away his tears, "I'm still proud of Sting-kun! Even if he did lose!"

"Fro thinks so too!" Frosh chipped in.

"Yeah! And if they fight again, maybe we should sell tickets!" Happy said.

Gray smiled at the cats' optimism and Lucy couldn't help but grin herself at the cute cats. Even if one of them was planning on capitalizing on the half-dragon's tendency to pick fights with each other. The Celestial Mage wandered back into the Sabertooth guildhall with Gray behind her, leaving the three cats to cheerfully talk amongst themselves. It was a lot livelier in the Sabertooth guildhall than it was when Lucy first came here. In a way, it was starting to resemble Fairy Tail. People were laughing, talking, and playing tabletop games instead of hurrying around getting jobs and then leaving like they were when Lucy first arrived here.

 _Maybe this is the effect Fairy Tail has on people_. Lucy pondered, her eyes sweeping across the room before landing on the vacant Master's throne, _Or maybe this is how the guild is when Jiemma isn't around_. (A/N: He _is_ a jerk after all. I'd use stronger language to describe him, but I want to keep this story as PG as possible)

Juvia had struck up a friendly conversation with Yukino and was laughing and smiling along with the white-haired Celestial Mage, which is something Lucy was glad to see. Erza was talking with a tall mage dressed in Medieval era clothing. Lucy pondered for a moment. His name was Rufus, right?

She's heard his name a few times, but she didn't know much about him. However, he and Erza seemed to get along okay. Of course, the already mind-bogglingly high energy that already had taken over the guildhall plainly went through the roof when a head of pink hair zipped down from the infirmary. It didn't take much thought to identify the fast move blob of pink as Natsu. Lucy would be lying if she said she wasn't at least a little concerned about his wellbeing.

She was a lot concerned.

From the day they met, Lucy knew that Natsu was the kind of person who wouldn't show his pain very easily and would just push through it. She figured it was from all those years alone made him _have_ to push through it. And maybe being the son of the strongest creature in the magical world was also a big help as well.

But that didn't stop Lucy from worrying that one day he'd get a wound that was so bad that he couldn't simply push through it. (A/N: Like mage cancer*, maybe?)

Natsu kept running until he was in front of Lucy and Gray. Much to Lucy's relief, he looked okay. His wounds had been healed, most likely thanks to Wendy's healing magic and the wound on his side had been freshly wrapped in clean, unburned bandages. Other than his side wound, Natsu looked completely okay.

"That was fast." Gray remarked, now missing his shirt, "Did Wendy get sick of your crap already?"

Natsu growled. "You wanna fight ice pansy?"

Lucy stepped in between the two before they actually did fight. "Oh no! You are _not_ fighting after what you just pulled, Natsu!"

"Aww. Come on Luce! Just one punch!" he wagered.

The Celestial mage faced Natsu, crossed her arms and fixed the half-Fire Dragon with a firm glare. Natsu stared back at her. He was giving her that kicked-puppy look that he knew could make her cave into his wishes.

Lucy had no such plans. And finally, the pinkette groaned in defeat as he apparently saw there was no winning against the Celestial Mage.

"Fine! I won't fight him. Yet."

The Celestial Mage sighed. This was probably about all she was she was going to get from the half-Fire Dragon as far as a promise not to over exert himself so badly that his wound reopened for a second time.

It wasn't long until Sting and Rogue come down as well with Wendy behind them. They were obviously talking about something, but Lucy couldn't really hear anything from where she was. However, judging from the expressions on their faces, Wendy was scolding them again. Lucy bit back a laugh. It was entertaining to see the small girl giving the two older half-dragons a good slap on the wrist for their behavior. And even better, they both seemed to have turned their attitude towards others around at an amazingly fast rate.

Must be another half-dragon thing. Or maybe getting beaten by Natsu was a humbling experience for the Twin Dragons.

Either way, Lucy was glad they dropped their pompous attitude and were making efforts to talk to people in the guild and it looked like they were starting to make friends.

"Looks like you knocked some sense into those two, Natsu." Gray remarked, apparently following Lucy's gaze.

Natsu grinned proudly. "That was nothin'. If I didn't promise Lucy I was going to lay off on the fighting, I'd _totally_ wipe the floor with you!"

Lucy sweat-dropped. Natsu never promised her he wouldn't go picking fights while he was injured. But if it kept the half-Fire Dragon from making a mess of the place, then she'll go with it. She wasn't sure when they came back in, but Lector and Frosh ran over to their respective partners and both of them took flying leaps at the Twin Dragons and almost knocked them over. Once again, Lucy had no idea what they were saying, but she was sure both cats were saying how proud they are of their partners even though they got the stuffing beaten out of them.

Happy wasn't far behind when he tackle hugged Natsu with his little paws stretching to wrap over the half-Fire Dragon's scarf(A/N: Nappy is one of my many BroTP's. They're so sweet!). Lucy smiled fondly. As annoying as Happy could be some times, the bond that had formed in such a short span of time between Natsu and the little blue cat was truly remarkable.

"Great job Natsu!" the blue cat praised, "I knew you could win!"

The pinkette laughed gleefully. "Thanks little buddy!"

"Yo Natsu-san!" Sting's voice called, "I got somethin' ta ask y'ah!"

The half-White Dragon came up to Natsu with Rogue close behind, both half-dragons looking significantly more cheerful than before. Something that Lucy once again found odd since they were self-absorbed jerks not even an hour ago. Not too long after Sting came up to them, an explosion rocked the ground from outside.

Lucy felt Natsu tense next to her, his head snapping in the direction of the explosion. The Celestial mage was about to ask what was wrong when someone outside cut her off.

"Natsu Dragneel. We know you're in there. Quit hiding and surrender to us or we will destroy Roba and everyone in it." a chilling voice threatened.

The once cheerful atmosphere buzzing within the Sabertooth guildhall all but evaporated as the voice spoke his terrifying threat. Lucy looked to Natsu, Erza, and Gray for reassurance but all of them were standing rigid, muscles tensed and ready to spring into action, and eyes wide with both fear and surprise.

Even every Sabertooth mage sensed the direness of the situation and had fallen dead silent, gazes trained on the huge, closed double doors.

The whole building was holding its breath for a few seconds, but to the people inside it felt like hours were slipping by. Until Natsu put Happy down and took an uneasy step towards the door. Lucy reacted before she even thought and grabbed hold of the half-Fire Dragon's wrist.

"Natsu!" she hissed, feeling the need to keep her voice low, "What are you doing?"

The pinkette turned to face Lucy, an unusual look of defeat in his eyes. "You heard them Luce. If I don't surrender than...than everyone in this town will die. Because of me. This is something I have to face alone."

Determination burned in Lucy's gut like fire and she took Natsu's other hand and looked him straight in the eye.

"Natsu, you _don't_ have to face this alone. You have Erza, Gray, Juvia, Happy, and my support behind you! If these people want to hurt everyone then, we'll stop them! _Together_!" Lucy declared.

Genuine surprise crossed the half-Fire Dragon's features when Wendy spoke up.

"Yeah! Of course we're going to help you Natsu-san! We're friends!" the young half-Sky Dragon declared.

Sting laughed lightly. "You think we'd let you go out and get yourself killed before Rogue and I get a rematch? No way!"

"We can beat them if we work together." Erza declared, "It won't be easy, but if we give it our all, it will be doable."

"Yeah. There's no way we're letting those jerks have their way." Gray agreed confidently.

Juvia nodded. "If Gray-sama says we fight, we fight!"

Sabertooth buzzed with agreement. Lucy could feel every mage burning with the determination to defend their city from this threat.

Then the doors of the Sabertooth guild exploded inwards and Lucy and her friends were directly in the line of fire as they stood in front of the doors. Gray, Sting, Rogue, and everyone else was quick enough to duck for cover. Lucy was going to do so herself, but the speed of Natsu's reflexes trumped her own and he wrapped an arm over her shoulders and pulled her down to the ground with him. The splintered remains of the door sailed over her head, narrowly missing Lucy by the smallest of margins. Dust was kicked up in the doorway by the explosion, but Lucy could see ten figures standing in the gap.

Lucy felt a bile lump form in her throat at the sight of them. The energy these people were throwing off was sickening. Of course, "people" wouldn't be the right term to describe them. They were inhuman in size and as the dust cleared, Lucy could see that almost all of them bore a monstrous appearance except for three of them. But Lucy could feel that they were far worse than the rest.

The blonde mage felt Natsu tense at the sight of them and his grip on her tightened in a protective manner. Curiosity mixed with her numbing fear. Lucy wondered if Natsu was feeling the same kind of fear that she was, or if there was something else that he wasn't telling.

Like if he knew these...monsters.

It won't surprise Lucy that much if he did, at least not after the incident with Oracion Seis. The man (for lack of a better term because Lucy doubted he really was a human man) in the lead of the group looked at Natsu with a cold, emotionless smile. Lucy's eyes drifted to the scarlet covered book nestled in the crook of the man's arm. It was resonating with a malicious energy that sent even more shivers up her spine than the group of nine creatures that stood in the doorway.

Lucy heard a deep, throaty rumble coming from Natsu. It took her a moment to realize he was growling at the man. She wasn't sure when he did it, but he was on his feet and standing protectively in front of everyone, fists clenched tightly and growling at the man like an angry watchdog. The Celestial mage could have sworn that Natsu's sakura pink hair was spiked up a little more than usual in the monsters' presence.

"So, son of Igneel. Are we going to do this the easy way, or are we going to have to do this the hard way?" the man asked, "Because either way, we are getting what we want."

Lucy finally found her voice and stood up. "I don't think so!" she declared.

The man's eyes flickered past Natsu to her. Lucy froze again as his dead black orbs met her's. His expression remained effortlessly stoic while Lucy was fighting to keep the fear she felt out of her face. Finally, he looked away from her and scanned the people standing behind her with a lazy interest.

"So much scum in this place. Makes me sick." a beast with four arms said from the doorway.

"But so many juicy souls! I wonder how much they'll be worth. How much? How much?" a strange bulbous monster asked psychotically.

Finally someone else spoke up.

"Oi! Go ta hell you jerks! You aren't wanted here!" Sting declared.

The man's eyes widened and his expression contorted into disgust. "You dare-"

Rogue cut him off. "Sting and I have much to learn about being half-dragons, but one thing we don't need to learn is to stick up for our own."

"Y-Yeah! If y-you wanna g-get to Natsu-san, y-you'll have to g-go through us!" Lector declared, his voice trembling slightly.

The guildhall shock with a battle cry from all the mages. Lucy grinned and glanced towards Natsu, who was looking back at the Sabertooth mages with disbelief. The Celestial mage took the half-Fire Dragon's hand. He looked over at her, his face still holding the same disbelief as it was before.

"See? We _all_ have your back Natsu."

Natsu's eyes widened as just for a second, Lucy saw an amber orange glow emanate from his back. The Celestial Mage's grin grew wider as the glow flashed for a moment then faded.

A chilling laugh echoed through the building, slowly silencing the fired up guild.

The man was looking at them with a creepy grin and night black eyes. "If you all insist on fighting us, then we will take pleasure in crushing your pathetic human souls."

…

 **A/N: Uh-oh. Things are getting heated, aren't they?**

 **To be honest, when Natsu, Sting and Rogue came back and Wendy scolded them for overdoing it I was half tempted to have Wendy leading them away by their ears to the infirmary but that (unfortunately) isn't in Wendy's character. Still would have been funny though.**

 **For those of you who are confused as to what mage cancer is...SPOILER WARNING FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T READ CHAPTER 463(?) OF THE MANGA! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK! I'm referring to an anti-Ether tumor. In one of the more recent chapters of the manga, Natsu got diagnosed with an anti-Ether tumor (a lethal one too. Yay! *sarcasm*) from using WAY too much magic in his fight with Zeref (total crap in my opinion because if using a lot of magic is bad then why haven't more people been diagnosed with this or have developed it sooner?). He's fine now. Sort of. He's been unconscious for the past few chapters, but I jokingly refer to anti-Ether tumors as "mage cancer" because that's kind of what it is (at least to me) and anti-Ether is bad news for mages.**

 **Okay. SPOILER WARNING LIFTED!**

 **I have a bit of unfortunate news. The updates might take a bit longer than usual. Writing this story is a bit difficult right now even though I've got this arc planned out. Translating those notes I made into actual writing is a bit challenging right now and I might take a break from this story. Might. I haven't really decided yet.**

 **So chill a little before you get out the torches and pitchforks.**

 **Sorry if this chapter wasn't as up to par as my other chapters. I've been feeling a little stuck lately and I just REALLY want to finish this arc.**

 **See y'ah all next chapter (and hopefully it's better ^_^).**


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N: Okay. Get ready for another marathon chapter. Tartarous/Blood Eagle Arc wraps up here! I think it's starting to become a pattern that I end an arc with what I've dubbed as a marathon chapter (they're so loooooonnnnngggg. Ugh.). I'm so so sorry this chapter took longer than I promised to post, but I majorily miscalculated how much I had to write for it to be finished -_-"**

 **Reviews:**

 **13** **: Yes. Natsu is a precious cinnamon roll that must be protected (#ProtectNatsu2k16)**

 **Usagi Tskunio** **: It's okay, not like it's much different from usual ;)**

 **Yuki314** **: I'm glad my voluptuous vocabulary is good for something and you're enjoying my story ;)**

 **FireHanyou15** **: Thank you! I will try hard to live up to your expectations :)**

 **Fairytailforlife** **: Hooray!**

 **Uchida Akira** **: For future reference, telling me to "just hurry up" when writing a chapter is really rude. I write these fanfictions in my** _ **free**_ **time** _ **for free**_ **and free time is something that's in short supply for me at the moment. Keep that in mind next time, okay? Thanks.**

 **Enjoy and thank you for your patience!**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

The warmth that spread through Natsu's back immediately registered in his mind as his wings trying to come out. It was only for a moment, but he felt it and it made him want to fight these people even more.

Well, people isn't the right word. The members of Tartarous aren't people, they're demons.

Full blown demons who are willing to slaughter everyone in Roba just because Natsu won't surrender.

The half-Fire Dragon couldn't feel worse about that. This whole thing was his fault because he had what Tartarous wanted. He actually contemplated surrendering just so his friends won't die. But Lucy snapped him back into his senses long enough for him put two and two together.

Even if Natsu did give Tartarous what they wanted, that still wouldn't have stopped them from slaughtering everyone. In fact that would make it easier since E.N.D. would be free to do whatever it pleased.

Furthermore, Lucy reminded him of something that he was ashamed to admit that he kept forgetting. He wasn't alone anymore. He didn't have to tackle every problem that presented itself to him solo any longer.

Because now he had his friends from Fairy Tail, he had Wendy, he had Sabertooth, and he had Lucy backing him up now. It was a strange feeling knowing so many people had his back, but it was a feeling Natsu enjoyed.

Mard Geer however, just smirked at them all. Even though the demons of Tartarous were vastly outnumbered, Natsu wasn't willing to bet the were out skilled. Natsu didn't have much first hand experience fighting these demons, but he had a feeling that they were almost on a dragon's level.

But this wouldn't be like last time. Today wasn't Natsu's day of humanity. He had his Dragon Magic and Natsu was sure as hell going to use it.

One of the demons in the entrance, a human looking man with dark hair and a scar above his left eye, chuckled.

"I think they're serious about fighting us Mard Geer." he smirked.

"You betcha!" a Sabertooth mage shouted definantly from the crowd, "If you think you can just waltz into _our_ guild and threaten us, you're sorely mistaken!"

The guild roared in equally defiant cheering, but Natsu couldn't shake the sinking feeling growing in his stomach. It was another strange feeling. Normally, he'd be excited to fight, but he didn't feel excitement. This feeling leaned more towards dread.

Natsu could tell that Lucy was feeling the same way. She still hadn't let go of his hand, not that he was complaining, it was actually largely reassuring that he knew the Celestial Spirit Mage was close by, but her touch was rigid and stiff like she was expecting to have to act fast at any moment.

Mard Geer's eyes were trained on Natsu, completely ignoring the massive crowd of mages standing behind the half-Fire Dragon, and thankfully Lucy as well. The pinkette'e blood boiled under the demon's gaze. It felt like he was being taunted.

Natsu's lips curled back into a snarl and his muscles tensed. He was going to charge at Mard Geer when he felt Lucy gently squeeze his hand. The snarl dropped and Natsu turned towards the blonde mage.

She was looking at him with concern and determination in her brown eyes. No words were necessary between them. Natsu got the silent message and let his body relax a little. He wouldn't attack Mard Geer. Yet.

Mard Geer looked even more amused.

"You let a woman hold you back, son of Igneel?" he taunted, "Have you so quickly lost your animal instincts?"

"My instincts are fine." Natsu smirked, "You just aren't worth losing my temper over."

Flames ignited around his fist, the red-orange fire burning with the same determination he felt not only running through him, but through every one of his allies. They all had one singular goal. Eliminate the threat that Tartarous presented to everyone they loved.

One of the demons in the doorway, a demon Natsu recognized as Jackal, growled impatiently.

"Let's just blow them apart already!"

The other demons grumbled in agreement and advanced. As they drew closer, Natsu could almost smell the magic burning in the air. The scent of magic mixed with an almost overwhelming smell of determination and fear.

However, as the members of Tartarous stepped over the threshold, many colors overtook the walls around them for a few brief moments. When it disappeared, they weren't in the guildhall anymore, they were in a mountain forest.

Natsu's jaw dropped. "WHAT THE HECK!? HOW ARE WE IN A FOREST!?"

Even the demons looked surprised by the sudden change of scenery and the Sabertooth mages weren't any less shocked.

A light laugh rang through the air and a few people gasped, seemingly recognizing the voice. Lucy was among those people.

"Minerva!" Lucy exclaimed, excited.

Natsu raised a brow. "Minerve-who?"

An unfamiliar woman materialized next to Natsu out of a portal that withered with the same colors as the light that surrounded them before they teleported here.

"Well, I couldn't let my town get caught up in the crossfire of our fight, now could I?" she grinned.

Mard Geer sneered at the visitor. " _Another_ filthy half breed? Just how many of you abominations are in one place?"

The woman sneered back, an air of offense coiling around her like a deadly snake. Natsu immediately got the same vibes he got from Erza just looking at her and shivered as she addressed Mard Geer.

"If you knew anything about us _filthy half breeds_ , you'd know better than to patronize us."

The air grew tense as Minerva and Mard Geer stared each other down. Neither one seemed to crumble to the other for a few moments. Then Mard Geer snapped his fingers.

Another demon that Natsu recognized, Tempestar stepped forward. Natsu tightened his grip on Lucy's hand as the demon stepped forward. Tempestar's eyes swept calculatingly over the crowd.

"Take care of the riffraff Tempestar." Mard Geer ordered.

The demon wordlessly nodded before uttering a single word. " **Cyclone**."

Wind tore through the crowd in the wake of that single word, accumulating into a tornado. Natsu released Lucy's hand and proceeded to tackle the blonde mage to the ground and dug his hand into the earth to anchor them against the fierce winds that pulled at them and threw everyone around them across the clearing like toys. As quickly as the wind storm started up, it died down and all was silent.

Natsu got up and let Lucy up. Looking behind them, the half-Fire Dragon only saw Wendy, Sting, Rogue, Minerva, his allies from Fairy Tail, a few members from Sabertooth, and the cats were the only ones who had survived the attack.

Next to him, he felt Lucy run cold.

"O-One attack… he wiped out so many people in one attack..." She murmured, eyes wide in horror as she stared at the motionless bodies of the Sabertooth members.

Rogue got up, rage written on his face. "You're gonna pay for that, b******."

Tempestar rumbled with laughter. "You amuse me half breed."

"If we amuse you so much, then how about we play a game." Minerva said, her voice cold as ice.

The half-god held out her hands, green, purple, and blue energy swirling menacingly around them. The ground began to rumble violently as a dark purple aura manifested around Minerva.

" _ **Niel Wielg Mion Terse Elcantaeus: Yagdo Rigora**_ _!_ "

As she chanted, Minerva slowly moved her hands in a circle in front of her until the incantation was complete. When the half-god spoke the final word, a huge magic circle appeared between the two groups and an even larger statue erupted from the ground with tremendous force. A giant cloud of dust was thrown up, but Natsu could still hear the surprised shouts of the Tartarous members. When the dust settled, Tempestar and a second demon were lying unmoving on the ground. All eyes were glued on the demons. Until the two unconscious demons suddenly dissolved into dust, much to the other demons' surprise.

"S-She took out Tempestar and Torafuzar with one hit!?" Jackal shouted, apparently not believing what he was seeing.

"How much will this cost us!? How much!? How much!?" a one-eyed demon exclaimed, panicked.

Mard Geer's brow furrowed for a microscopic moment until he spoke. "This changes nothing. They will all die and our Master will be revived. (A/N: *cough* unaliving *cough*) Killing them will be no issue even without Tempestar and Torafuzar."

That seemed to refocus the demons and their eyes locked onto the mages like wild dogs about to tear into their prey.

Mard Geer jumped behind his allies and snapped his fingers once again. The sharp sound ricocheted around the forest and like a silent command, the demons surged forward. Most of them. Tempestar and a fish-like demon hung back with Mard Geer.

At the same time, the others charged the enemy. Gray went for the dark haired man, Erza and Minerva charged at Kyoka, Juvia came at the monk demon, Wendy and Carla fought with the four armed tentacle monster, and Lucy released Natsu's hand to join Yukino in her battle with Jackal.

That only left Natsu, Sting and Rogue. They were the only ones that wasn't engaged in a fight with a member of Tartarous. But they all seemed to have their sights set on a single enemy.

The trio of half-dragons charged at Mard Geer.

…

Gray's POV:

…

The demon that Gray had chosen to battle turned out to be a fairly poor choice. Not only did this demon use some sort of ice magic like Gray did, but he could consume ice like Gajeel devoured iron. This made it difficult for the Ice Maker Mage to land a hit on him. Scratch that. It made it _impossible_.

" **Ice Make: Lance**!"

Spears of ice fired from Gray's outstretched palms at his target. The demon, whose name Gray didn't know yet, smirked.

"Again? You never seem to learn."

He grabbed the ice effortlessly and sunk his pointed teeth into it and devoured it. However, Gray was ready with another attack. The Ice Maker mage leapt above the demon, icy mist curling around his hands.

" **Ice Make: Hammer**!"

A huge hammer of ice appeared in Gray's hands and he swung it down of the demon's head. The hammer hit its target, but it was blocked by the demon's hand. This time, instead of simply devouring Gray's magic, the demon shattered it with a blast of his own magic.

Purple hued ice struck Gray in his chest as it tore through his hammer. The Ice mage was thrown through the forest and made harsh impact in what looked to be an abandoned quarry. The demon wasn't far behind him. He somehow closed the distance that had been created in the time it took Gray to get back on his feet.

Gray was vaguely surprised the demon didn't attack him while he was down, but one look in the demon's human-like eyes told him that he was just playing with Gray. But there was a familiarity about those eyes that stared at him with so much mockery that frustrated Gray.

"Who exactly are you!?" he demanded.

The demon chuckled. "I'm surprised you haven't recognized me Gray." he paused, smirking at the Fairy Tail mage, "I am your father."

Gray's fists tightened. "That's impossible!" the Ice-Maker mage shouted, "My father died 14 years ago! I saw it with my own eyes!"

"My name is Silver Fullbuster. Gray, I am you father."

Gray threw his hand towards the demon and a dozen swords of ice materialized in the frigid air.

"YOU'RE LYING!"

'Silver' however, destroyed Gray's attack with a casual swing of his arm. In moments, the demon closed the distance between them and swung a fist at Gray. He narrowly dodged and threw an ice-covered fist of his own, fueled by rage and the refusal to believe that this man...this monster...was his father.

It didn't go as planned however. Instead of knocking the demon off his feet, when Gray's fist collided with 'Silver's' face, he smirked at Gray and hit him with a fierce blast of ice. But it didn't hurt as much as Gray had anticipated. 'Silver' was still holding back.

"My father can't be alive!" Gray bellowed as he summoned yet another attack.

Amusement glowed in 'Silver's' eyes as he roared with laughter.

"AHAHAHAHA! This is nice! You're reacting as I expected!"

Another wave of purple hued ice flew at Gray. Shards of ice cut his skin and threw him into the trees, but once again, the demon seemed to remain just feet away from Gray with the same mocking grin on his face. The face of Gray's father.

'Silver' laughed again. "Indeed, it's true I am your father. I've watched you grow up Gray. From the moment you were born, I was there."

Gray growled as the magic pressure around him increased. Large crystals of ice froze around Gray's hands as he attacked the demon once again.

"That's impossible! My father wasn't a monster like you!"

Gray threw a punch at 'Silver'. 'Silver' smiled wickedly and caught Gray's fist in his own. The force of the impact ripped through the air and stirred the frosted stones around them.

"I am your father Gray, but at the same time, I am not." 'Silver' grinned, "My true name is one that you might recognize. They call me _DELIORA_!"

Gray's blood ran cold as the name hung in the air. Without realizing it, Gray had completely dropped his guard and 'Silver'...no... _Deliora_...took that opening to hit Gray hard. He didn't feel it. Gray had gone completely numb to the pain. At the moment, Gray's mind was occupied with the memories of that day. The day his life changed forever.

The day started out normal enough, but no one seemed to be able to shake the foreboding feeling that hung over the town. Then the sky turned black as night in the middle of the day. The town trembled down to its very foundations as an unforgettable sound rolled over the valley. It was the sound of a demon roaring. Everything happened so fast that Gray's young mind couldn't comprehend what was happening until it was all over. And when that happened, he was kneeling among the rubble of his home staring into the blank eyes of his father and mother.

That day, he was found by a master Ice mage named Ur and her disciple Lyon. She took Gray in and taught him everything he knew about Ice Maker magic. Gray had learned that the demon that had laid waste to his town had been called "Deliora" and at that moment, he was determined to kill that demon with his own hands. Four years passed and then Deliora appeared again. Ur tried to fight it, but was unable to defeat it. Ultimately, it cost her her life. Lyon was never the same. He ran off and joined Lamia Scale while Gray went on to eventually join Fairy Tail.

That was 14 years ago in total.

And in all that time, Gray never expected that monster that haunted his nightmares to return. This time, masquerading as his late father.

Shakily, the ice mage stood again as Deliora approached him.

"The thing is...Gray. You're real father has been dead for much longer than you believed." Deliora continued, "Six months before you were born, I encountered a boisterous half-Ice Demon by the name of Silver Fullbuster."

Gray's eyes widened in shock as Deliora continued to speak.

"He robbed me of my physical form, but I robbed _him_ of something greater. _His life_. It was just perfect, don't you think? I was in need of a body and there one was. In fairly good condition and just waiting to be used." Deliora grinned, "However, Silver's body was; and still is, an insufficient substitute believe it or not. Silver's demon blood, the blood that allows me to possess this body in the first place, recognizes me as an enemy and continues to fight me in an attempt to drive me out. So I set my eyes on someone who had much more potential to serve as a host. Someone with the blood of a demon, but more diluded that Silver."

Deliora's eyes locked with Gray's. In that moment, Gray understood what this monster's goal was.

"No way…"

"That's right Gray. I've chosen you. But of course at the time you were born, you were far too weak to sustain my spirit. So I had to wait until you got stronger. But at the speed you were progressing, I couldn't wait that long, so I left SIlver's body for a moment and possessed the body of another great demon and destroyed your home!" the demon cackled.

" _SHUT UP_!" Gray roared.

The temperature around Gray rapidly dropped. Spears of ice erupted around him and launched towards Deliora. The demon's eyes widened in surprise as the spears slammed into his chest. Gray smirked, satisfied he had caught his enemy off-guard. Deliora skidded across the ground a few feet back, leaving deep grooves in the earth. However, the demon grabbed hold of the icy projectiles that now protruded from his armor and wrenched them out.

"Oh, you have a temper, but I must thank you for the snack."

Deliora swept his arm through the air. Shards of ice formed in Gray's skin. Surprise and pain tore through the ice-mage, of which both feelings manifested on his face as he doubled over. The pain that tore through his body almost sent Gray to his knees, but he steadied himself on the quarry wall.

The demon seemed quite amused by Gray's pain.

"AHAHAHA! Such a wonderful expression! I've waited 14 years for this moment Gray Fullbuster and I'm going to savor it! Once I kill you, I'll possess _your_ body and do you know what I'll do first?" Deliora taunted, "I WILL SLAUGHTER EVERY ONE OF YOUR PRECIOUS NAKAMA!"

Gray grabbed hold of one of the icy spikes that was imbedded in his bare chest and like a chain-reaction, every ice shard in Gray's body shattered into harmless specks too small to do anything. The ice-mage stood up straight, a cold fire burning in his dark eyes.

"LIKE HELL I'LL LET YOU DO THAT!" the Ice-mage roared, removing his hand from the wall, " **Ice Make: Ice Impact**!"

A large, intricate, spiked ice hammer appeared above Deliora and was brought down on him. However, the demon once again caught Gray's attack and devoured it.

"That's not going to work!" he said, finishing consuming Gray's attack, "Don't you know anything about half breeds?"

White-purple light swirled around Deliora's mouth. Gray's blood ran cold as he realized what the demon was going to do. He didn't think that half-demons could perform a breath attack like half-dragons could, but here he was, about to get blasted by a demon's breath attack.

"Here I come kid." Deliora taunted, " **Ice Demon's Scream**!"

Shards of ice spiraled from Deliora's mouth at Gray in a wide cone. Gray was unfortunately unable to dodge the massive attack and was struck head on by the breath attack. The ice shards imbedded themselves in Gray's skin and pushed him off his feet before dropping him hard on the ground.

"GRAY-SAMA!" Juvia's voice exclaimed.

The ice mage tilted back on the crown of his head and found himself staring up at Juvia's worried face. It took a moment for him to realize that he'd been thrown back to the main fight by Deliora's breath attack. Juvia tore her attention back to her own fight in time to avoid an attack from the demon she was battling.

In turn, Gray refocused on his own fight and rolled out of the way to evade a spike of ice that impaled the area where the ice-mage previously was.

"AHAHAHAHA! I'M SURPRISED YOU'RE LASTING THIS LONG! YOU MUST HAVE SOME DEMON BLOOD IN YOU AFTER ALL!" Deliora laughed.

Gray shakily pulled himself to his feet. Pain tore through his body and it was almost overwhelming, but somehow Gray fought through it.

"You...of all people, I promised I would destroy...with these hands." Gray growled.

Deliora sobered and grinned smugly at Gray. "Ice ain't gonna work on me. Unless you somehow know another kind of magic, your chances of victory are exactly zero."

Gray concentrated his magic to the areas next to him. " **Ice-Make: Cannon**!"

Two large, ground launch cannons formed on the ground next to him with the barrels aimed squarely at Deliora. The cannons fired their rounds at the demon, but Deliora made no move to defend or evade the attack.

"Usele-"

However, a rock striking Deliora in his chin cut him off. Gray smirked at the shell-shocked demon.

"You were saying about my chances of victory?"

Deliora's eyes narrowed. "I see. You made a cannon out of ice and used it to launch a typeless attack!"

"Right on the money, now EAT THIS!" Gray roared.

Several more cannons appeared at a wave of Gray's hands. All of the cannons simultaneously fired stone ammunition at the demon. A great amount of dust was stirred up by the attack when the cannons finally ran out of stones to fire. But it was quickly cleared by Deliora, who may have been a bit more bruised then before, but was still standing.

"Clever, but not clever enough."

Another swipe of his arm covered the surrounding area in purple hued ice. There were a few shouts of surprise from the others, but it didn't appear to be an immediate issue for them.

"Now that everything is covered in ice, there's no way you can use anymore typeless attacks." Deliora explained.

However, Gray chuckled. "You just dug your own grave."

Surprise crossed Deliora's face at Gray's words.

"This is ice generated by _your_ magic and if there's one thing Gajeel taught me about half breeds, it's that they aren't capable of eating what they make with their own magic." Gray knelt down and planted a palm on the ice-covered ground as a white glow twisted around him, "And I just happen to have a little trick up my sleeve. I can pass ice magic through my body and shape it in any way I want. That's a trick Ur taught me. This is the true power of maker magic!"

A bead of sweat rolled down Deliora's forehead as Gray aimed his other hand at him.

" _DISAPPEAR DELIORA_!"

A wave of purple hued ice shards spiraled from Gray's hand and swallowed Deliora in the attack. But when it died down, once again; despite Gray's efforts, the demon still stood.

"A valiant effort, but ice is still ice. It won't affect me even if it _is_ mine." he mocked.

Blow after blow racked through Gray's already sore body. The ice mage tried to defend himself, but he was already worn out from the battle and passing the ice through his body only served to tire him further. He was running out of not only magic, but of physical strength as well.

"Know terror human. How dare you attempt to stand before catastrophe itself!"

Another blow struck Gray's stomach, forcing a clot of blood up his throat as Deliora struck him with shards of ice.

"Did you really think you could turn your hatred of me into strength!?"

Gray tumbled across the ground, painfully scraping his body against the frozen ground until he hit one of the trees that circled the clearing they were battling in. Deliora continued to monologue as Gray struggled to stand.

"Remember this taste well! This is the taste of despair! Humans can _never_ defeat demons, even if they are mildly related to one!"

Gradually, the Ice mage stood. "I...don't care. I... _must_ win. No matter what!"

Deliora scoffed at him. "Your ice has no affect on me, I've prevented you from using typeless attacks and there's no way I'd ever be soft enough to fall for an appeal to emotion."

Gray's thoughts stalled for a moment. Despite how much he didn't want it to be true, Deliora was right. Gray's magic did nothing, there weren't any materials that weren't covered in ice for him to use, and he doubted that even if Deliora did watch him grow up that he'd stop if Gray asked nice enough.

Then the glint of something golden just past Deliora's shoulder caught Gray's attention. That, and a flash of dark blue.

A smirk worked its way onto Gray's face. "Still. I've got an ace up my sleeve."

"Catch Gray-sama!" a familiar voice shouted.

A long shaft of polished golden metal cut through the air as it flew over Deliora's shoulder. Gray held up his hand and caught the khakkhara (A/N: It's the staff that Keyes was carrying in case you didn't know) in his hand as it slid through the air.

Deliora's eyes grew wide. "Keyes's khakkhara!?"

"Thanks Juvia!" Gray called, "Now I can finish this!"

The Ice mage gripped the khakkhara like a javelin as ice gathered around his arm, building into a massive armored shell.

" **Ice-Make: VAMBRACE!** "

Gray wound up and threw the khakkhara with all of his remaining strength. The staff flew from his grasp and shot through the air, straight and true towards its target. In the time it took to blink, the khakkhara was impaled clean through Deliora's chest. The demon's armor had been pierced like it was a mere tin can and came out on the other side.

Disbelief and complete shock was frozen on Deliora's face as he fell to his knees, gripping the shaft of the khakkhara.

"I-Impossible! You-You're not even a half-demon! You can't beat _me_!" Deliora roared.

"Well….hate to...break it to y'ah...but I just did." Gray huffed.

Gradually, Deliora's grasp on the khakkhara's shaft weakened until it was gone completely and the demon's possessed body tilted over with a hard _thud_. A black mist came off the corpse like cobweb and dissolved in the air with a high pitched squeal. Moments clicked by and the purple hued ice melted away. With the ice gone, a white glow enveloped the vacant corpse and it dissolved into small orbs of white-blue light.

Gray grinned weakly at his victory. "Rest in peace...dad."

When those words left Gray's mouth, his exhaustion finally crashed down on him and he sank into sleep's comforting embrace.

…

Juvia's POV:

…

Relief bubbled in Juvia's chest when the ice disappeared; but at the same time, horror gripped her when she heard Gray hit the ground. He must have been exhausted after fighting so hard. That ice demon looked to have been a difficult foe.

However, the water mage had to turn her attention from her dear friend to her own battle. The demon Juvia was exchanging blows with had a skeletal face and dressed much like a monk and had previously carried a khakkhara staff before Juvia stole it and threw it to Gray.

Apparently, the demon's name was "Keyes" as the demon Gray had fighting had exclaimed when Juvia threw the khakkhara to the ice mage. Thankfully, Gray had managed to defeat the demon, but even after the fall of his comrade, Keyes's expression remained stoic.

"So Deliora fell...how strange that he was defeated by the son of a mere half breed." the demon mused without a trace of emotion.

Juvia gathered water around her hands and swept it at Keyes in a deadly arc, however the attack passed through demon's body like it weren't even there to begin with. Once again, Keyes didn't seem to notice and if he did, he didn't care.

"And giving the boy my khakkhara to use a weapon, very clever for a human."

Juvia attacked again, " **Water Slicer**!"

However, once again, the attack reaped no results. Juvia's water passed through Keyes's body much like how attacks made by solid objects did for Juvia.

"Fool. My body is composed of particles. You have no hope of landing a blow on me."

Keyes rose his hand high and the ground clattered beneath them. Skeletal figures rose from the ground around Juvia, clawing at her ankles with their thin, boney hands.

A shiver crawled up the water mage's spine.

"W-What is this!? **Water Jigsaw**!"

The swirling torrent of water blades shattered the rising skeletons, reducing them to piles of scattered bones. Juvia remained vigilant, fearful that more skeletal warriors would rise out of the earth at any given moment.

However, none came.

Instead, Juvia saw a massive torrent of swirling black particles flying in Gray's direction, much to Juvia's horror. In his current condition, the Ice-maker mage would be entirely unable to defend himself.

The water mage didn't waste a second leaping before her friend and love, using her own body to shield him. The feeling of Keyes's attack striking her was worse than any pain she's ever felt. It burned worse than fire across her body and forced a pained scream from her lungs.

Luckily the attack didn't last long, but when it ended Juvia felt incredibly weak. She dropped to her knees, clutching the area where the attack struck her. The water mage noted how hard it suddenly was to breathe as her breaths came in ragged huffs.

"W-What was... _that_?" Juvia huffed, shakily getting to her feet once again.

Keyes cocked his head to the side as he regarded the water mage. "Oh? You still have the strength to stand? Interesting. Even after foolishly taking a direct strike from anti-Ether particles, you can still get up." the demon remarked, his voice veiled with curiosity.

Juvia's eyes twitched. "Anti-Ether? The same...particles...that make...up your body…and were in...the air of your...guild hall?"

"The same."

 _This is not good_. Juvia thought, _These are the same particles that put Natsu-san out of commission for three days and he's a half-dragon._

"And even though you didn't know what this was, you still foolishly took the hit for the unconscious human." Keyes continued, disgust in his hollow voice, "Human emotions. They will be what destroys you in the end."

Keyes and Juvia exchanged more blows, each of them dancing around the other's attacks. The demon seemed to be targeting Gray specifically, but Juvia had learned her lesson and instead of blocking Keyes's attacks with her body, she used her water to block it instead.

Keyes's body seemed to lose physical shape and spread out until it greatly resembled an octopus with tentacles of tightly compressed particles. The tentacles extended towards Juvia ten at a time. She managed to dodge and slice some of them, but the water mage was already beginning to suffer the effects of the anti-Ether she was already exposed to. Her movements were somewhat more sluggish, allowing the tentacles she missed to grab her.

Tendril after tendril coiled around her body, pulling her closer to her enemy and allowing the deadly particles to seep into her water body. Pain crackled through her body once again. Juvia barely was able to hold back a scream.

Keyes laughed darkly. "I'm beginning to understand why Kyoka enjoys playing with humans so much. They're fascinating tools."

"'Tools'?" Juvia strained, "Is...that all...you see us...as?"

"How else should I see them? To a demon, humans are simply vessels and tools for us to utilize. As a Necromancer, puppeting your weak flesh bodies is a simple matter."

Juvia gritted her teeth against her boiling rage. "What does that have to do with anything!?"

The only response the water mage received was a wicked smile. His form became fuzzy as his body stretched in all directions like cotton candy into a massive, buzzing net of darkness. Then in a moment quicker than a blink, Juvia was swallowed by the black cloud. The anti-Ether particles enveloped her in a painful darkness. The mere touch of the particles burned like an acid, the pain forcing the water mage to screw her eyes shut against it. She felt Keyes's malevolent presence all around her. Juvia immediately understood what the demon was doing. He was trapping her within himself. Since his body was composed of the very particles that could kill a mage such as herself, it was easy to assume that heavy exposure like this would be fatal. In a way that was correct.

No matter how hard the water mage struggled, she couldn't seem to break out of the prison. It hurt being within it. There was no air free of anti-Ether to be found and it felt like Juvia was slowly suffocating. Seconds dragged on to a painful length as the water mage felt herself growing weak.

However, she still heard a voice. But it wasn't a voice she wanted to hear.

"I will kill you and use your corpse to slaughter your friends. Starting with the one who struck down Deliora."

Juvia's eyes snapped open in rage to darkness. Magic electrofied her body in a swift cold sweep. The water mage's body shifted from flesh to water. Juvia was a water mage, but she also was water itself and water didn't like being contained. Given time, it could overcome any barrier.

Fortunately, the water mage became water at precisely the correct moment when the cocoon that previously contained her collapsed into such a fierce twister of blades that if she had delayed her actions by a second more, the water mage would have been shredded.

The demon had let his guard down, apparently assuming that the water mage was dead when Juvia seeped into him, letting the particles absorb her liquid form like a sponge. Then she attacked. Juvia thrashed around with Keyes violently, throwing attacks and flaring her magic in every direction.

And for the first time since their battle started, Keyes howled in pain.

Juvia's attacks were finally doing damage.

"No! What are you doing!?" the demon wailed, "Stop it!"

"I will not allow you to harm Gray-sama!" the water mage yelled, "I will _not_ allow you to harm my friends!"

Keyes screams rang out loudly as Juvia surged her magic one last time. The force of the water finally overcame the barrier and Keyes was destroyed. The demon exploded outwards and the only thing left was Juvia, who had resolidified where the Necromancer previously stood. A ring of bleak dust surrounded her; the remains of her enemy, as she tried to regain her composure. The water mage's breaths came out in heavy puffs, but a small, relieved laugh still somehow escaped her parted lips at the realization that her enemy had been defeated and her beloved friends were safe.

With this thought in mind, Juvia collapsed.

…

Rufus's POV: (Bet you didn't see this one coming)

…

This particular demon that Rufus was facing was truly a challenge for the Memory-Maker mage. Though the demon looked human to a degree, she possessed a sadistic ability to control people. Rufus was surprised to find that she could even manipulate the unconscious bodies of his comrades, though they behaved as nothing more than mere marionettes even under the demon's control.

Rufus quickly deduced that the demon's powers were purely mental, with was something that the Memory-Maker mage excelled at. He would forever remember the expression on the demon's pale face when she discovered that she couldn't force him to choke himself. It was not an easy feat to resist her control and Rufus was struggling with it even now, but it did give him a slight advantage against his enemy.

But at the same time, his magic seemed to not affect his opponent as much as he hoped. Rufus couldn't afford to go all out at the demon because every time he attacked her, she made someone jump in front of her and take the hit. This forced the Memory-Maker mage to hold back for fear of hurting his fellow mages.

The purple hued ice that appeared a few moments ago wasn't helping him at all. Strangely, Rufus couldn't use his magic to get rid of it, much to his chagrin. On the bright side, his opponent seemed to be as hindered as he was by the sudden presence of the bazar ice. However just as quickly as the ice appeared, it disappeared. At the same time, Rufus saw one of the Fairy Tail mages drop out of the corner of his eye and minutes later, another did as well.

The distraction offered the demon an opening in Rufus's defenses and so he suffered a few injuries, but this quickly snapped him back into his own fight. However, neither side seemed to be making any progress on the other.

The two enemies were in a stalemate.

…

Erza's POV:

…

Erza was still surprised at Kyoka's strength. She remembered it well from when they had infiltrated Tartarous to rescue Natsu. Kyoka's strength was undeniable and even with Minerva fighting with her, Erza was having difficulties with the demon. Minerva's skills with magic was as undeniable as Kyoka's strength, but the demon seemed to keep dodging her attacks. And it didn't help that the half-god seemed to be a little winded after pulling off such a large spell as she did just minutes before. Still, Minerva was holding her own against Kyoka just fine.

The Titania was well aware that Gray and Juvia had eliminated two of their enemies, but had fallen in the process. Though she was relieved that there were less enemies to deal with, the redhead was concerned for her comrades' safety as now they were prone and completely open for attack.

Fortunately, it seems that Lector, Frosh, and Happy were taking it upon themselves to get the fallen mages out of the line of fire, much to Erza's relief.

Kyoka attacks increased in frequency and speed and even Erza was having a little trouble keeping up. Thankfully, Minerva was there to switch Erza out of the fight. Literally. Of course, the Titania suspected that Minerva possessed a magic that allowed her to manipulate the fabric of space.

Minerva took Kyoka by surprise at the sudden opponent swap and was struck several times by the half-god. Erza took the opportunity to attack Kyoka from behind. With so much at stake, she wasn't going to lose.

But as things looked now, it didn't seem that there would be a decisive winner any time soon.

…

Wendy's POV:

…

Wendy was scared. She was scared when the Oracion Seis had attacked Cait Shelter, but this fear that ran through her veins was even more powerful than she'd ever experienced. The demon, Exel, who stood before her was massive, bearing four, steel colored arms and a swarm of tentacles that functioned as his legs. On top of that, he regarded the tiny half-Sky Dragon with an animalistic amusement.

Wendy fought back the fear and recomposed herself. She wasn't going to give up before the battle even started. Her friends were fighting hard to protect the people of Roba and so would she, because she's the daughter of a dragon and dragons always protect what's precious to them until their final breath.

Carla was with her too and Wendy knew without a doubt that the white cat would be her wings and emotional support if need-be.

With these reassurances in mind, the small half-dragon shifted her stance and spread her arms.

" **Deus Corona** (Elemental Resistance, Rise) **! Deus Equus** (Physical Ability, Rise) **! Ile Armes** (Attack Doubling) **! Ile Armue** (Defense Doubling) **! Ile Vernier** (Speed Doubling) **! ENCHANT!** "

A large bright green magic seal glowed beneath Wendy's feet, casting its green-white light upwards in a tall shaft that swirled around her. With each word that left the half-Sky Dragon's mouth, she felt the effects of the spells she was calling out. Admittedly, Wendy didn't use **Enchantments** often because she wanted to rely on her Dragon Magic more than **Enchanting**. But now seemed like a good time to use them.

Surprise crossed the monster's features before settling into a sneer.

"So you're an enchanter, eh?"

Exel swung down one of his massive arms at Wendy as her **Enchantments** settled. Easily, she leapt into the air, bluish-white scales surfacing on her body as magic gathered in her throat.

" **Sky Dragon's...ROAR**!"

Wendy's breath attack struck Exel dead on, however he pushed through it easily. She landed back on the ground as Exel also returned to earth, hurtling straight at her.

"Ah ha! Are ya sure ya should be pushing yourself that hard?! Huh?!" He mocked, "You might break a nail, princess!"

The half-Sky Dragon swung her foot up into Exel's face, wind swirling around it.

" **Sky Dragon's Talons**!"

The heel of Wendy's foot slammed hard into his face, the force of the impact echoed hollowly around the valley. But behind her foot, the demon smirked. Wendy's attack did nothing. Exel folded his arms over his chest, an evil power gathering around them.

" **Tenga Goken** …" he muttered.

Carla sensing danger, swooped in and grabbed Wendy by the shoulder seams of her outfit and hoisted her high into the air as Exel completed his spell.

"... **ONIMARU**!"

Thick shafts of light tore through the earth in an "X" pattern. Shouts of surprise sounded from the surrounding battles as the light died down. The ground was now scarred with deep trenches spreading out from Exel's feet...er...tentacles, the spot where Wendy had been standing moments before.

Miraculously, as far as Wendy knew, no one was hurt by the attack. Not even the unconscious Sabertooth members from the looks of it. Well, not exactly. The force of the attack threw them farther away from the clearing, probably causing some blunt-force injuries and more than a bit of bruising, but none of them had been cleaved in half and Wendy didn't smell any blood.

"Thanks Carla!" Wendy grinned.

"Watch out child!"

The white cat dove sideways as another shaft of light ripped through the sky. The duo narrowly dodged the attack, but Wendy's hair hadn't been so fortunate. As they dodged, it swayed towards the attack and part had been cut off. Not that Wendy really cared or anything, but her hair hadn't even been in the light and it had been cut cleanly in half.

The shock of what happened to Wendy's hair from merely being in proximity to the attack distracted both of them long enough for one of Exel's tentacles to swat them out of the air. The half-Sky Dragon slammed into the earth, shattering the ground on the force of the impact. Carla's wings disappeared and the poor white cat laid limply among the ruble, eyes closed. Thankfully the impact only seemed to have made Carla black out for only a few moments. She awoke, though she was dazed.

Almost immediately however, Exel swung his arms at Wendy once again.

" **Juzumaru**!"

Another wave of white light ran at Wendy. However, she was unable to dodge the attack. Instead she pushed Carla out of the way. The white cat shouted in protest, but thankfully she was out of the range of the attack.

"WENDY!" Carla shouted.

The half-Sky Dragon braced herself against the force but quickly found her **Enchantments** failing against the attack.

"M-My resistances aren't holding up!" She exclaimed.

Finally the spells that cloaked and protected her crumbled and Wendy felt the full force of Exel's strike. Wendy flew across the way and crashed through several trees before coming to a halt. Pain prickled through the small girl's body as she was consumed by a massive cloud of dust that was stirred up by her impact.

However, her daze was broken by a large black shape hurtling towards her from above. The demon landed harshly on top of Wendy's small form, virtually crushing her under his massive weight. The half-Sky Dragon grunted under Exel's weight, much to his amusement.

"Ahahaha! Ya half breeds are so amusing!" he bellowed, "All of you believe you're stronger than ya actually really are!"

Exel's tentacles weighed down Wendy's arms at the wrists. It felt like her bones were going to break any second under the pressure.

"I should just crush you like the insignificant insect you are!"

The pressure on her body gradually began to increase to excruciating levels that almost tore screams of pain from the bluenette's throat. Until a white blur flew into the demon's face at full force. Exel wasn't physically phased by Carla's sudden presence, but his face betrayed his surprise and annoyance.

Desperately, Carla clawed at Exel's face, but her well trimmed claws couldn't penetrate the demon's thick skin.

"UNHAND WENDY RIGHT THIS INSTANT!" The cat demanded.

Wendy's brown eyes widened ever-so-slightly. "...Carla…?"

The cat continued to claw at Exel's face, which only served to annoy the demon. "UNHAND HER AT ONCE!"

However the demon didn't heed Carla's wishes and his face settled into a deep scowl.

Wendy sensed the incoming danger as Exel's scowl deeped. "No Carla...run.."

The white cat didn't listen to Wendy's pleas. "LET GO OF WENDY!"

The demon's lips curled in a snarl and panic rose in Wendy's throat.

"CARLA RUN!" she screamed.

Exel finally seemed to have enough of the flying white cat and curled his large hand around Carla's head and lifted her off his face, holding her up to his line of sight.

"What an annoying cat." he muttered, "I wonder if it's edible."

The half-Sky Dragon's eyes dilated as tears welled in her eyes and her lips parting to allow a horrified gasp to escape her mouth.

"No!" she shouted desperately, "Stop! I beg of you!"

However the demon didn't heed her pleas and put Carla's head in his large mouth while laughing at the small half-dragon's miserable helplessness. The demon's mouth was full of long sharp teeth that looked especially adapted for cutting flesh.

Much to Wendy's horror, Exel's mouth was closing around Carla's head, his teeth beginning to puncture the cat's soft flesh and bringing forth small trickles of blood from the wounds that stained Carla's snow white fur a dark crimson red.

A burning feeling ignited in Wendy's heart and all at once a massive amount of power rushed into her. Wind gathered and exploded underneath Exel with such force the massive demon was thrown clear off Wendy and threw Carla out of the demon's grasp and safely off to the side where she wouldn't be hurt.

The half-Sky Dragon didn't even realize she had been screaming in retribution until her sore throat alerted her of it.

Wendy stood with new energy coursing through her body. Looking down at her arms, she saw glowing white feathers had grown from her wrists and ankles, making her bluish-white scales seem to literally glow in the fading sunlight.

The wind that tore around Wendy in a terrifyingly powerful tornado still hadn't died down and whipped Wendy's hair in all directions as well as bent the trees to the point where it looked like they would snap any moment. Even though this was a high magnitude feat for her, Wendy felt no magical drain whatsoever.

Immediately Wendy realized what she had achieved. Grandina had told her when she was small that half-dragons had the unique ability to summon vast amounts of Ethernano into their bodies when they feel an intense desire to protect something even at the cost of their life.

This ability was called " **Dragon Force** ".

Above her, Wendy could clearly see Exel's surprised expression. He had apparently not anticipated the small half-dragon to pull off such a massive feat and even Wendy was surprised. Even though she had grown substantially after meeting Natsu and Lucy, she never would have dreamed she could achieve **Dragon Force** this soon.

It was incredible. Wendy felt like she was more than a half-Sky Dragon, she felt like she was the wind itself.

 _I can hear the voice of the wind...I can feel the pulse of the atmosphere._ The half-Sky Dragon thought, _Right now...the air is under_ my _control!_

The half-Sky Dragon tensed and leapt into the air. Even with **Dragon Force** , Wendy still couldn't summon wings, but she had enough strength to jump to an insane height. Which was more than the height Exel was thrown to.

Wendy zipped behind him, eyes drilling into the back of his head until she came down hard into his back, throwing the demon back down to earth. Exel struck the ground hard, but was up just as fast. He whipped around, swiping an arm at Wendy, sending a familiar shaft of white light at her. But with **Dragon Force** , dodging the demon's attack was no problem. Wendy easily leapt over him and struck him with a hard punch from behind. The demon flew forwards and Wendy took to the air again.

" **Sky Dragon's Roar**!"

Exel was overtaken by Wendy's breath attack and buried among a massive pile of rubble, but he quickly resurfaced and charged at Wendy,

"HOW INTERESTING!" he shouted, "WHO WOULD HAVE GUESSED A PINT-SIZED RUNT LIKE YOU COULD PULL THIS OFF!"

Wendy fixed Exel with a hard, unwavering gaze as she spread her arms. Before she had been called to Fairy Tail, Wendy had looked through a book of spells that Grandina had left her. It was like the dragon knew she would be leaving but still left Wendy a tool to use. Something to make her stronger. However, the spell book had been sitting unused for seven years because she didn't understand most of it. In that time, most of the content had been ruined by water, but Wendy managed to salvage one advanced spell from the pages and learned it.

And this spell is what she planned to use to finish this once and for all.

A massive tunnel of wind gathered around the demon and the half-Sky Dragon. Exel's eyes widened in surprise.

"W-What is this...wind!?"

" **Sky Dragon's Secret Art: Scattering Light Sky Drill**!"

A pillar of wind shot down from above at Exel. But the demon still smirked.

"My 'juhou' will slice everything to pieces!" he declared, " **Youtou Crescent Moon**!"

Much to Wendy's surprise, Exel's attack cut through Wendy's and blasted her back. The half-Sky Dragon skidded across the ground until she came to a stop. The demon cackled maniacally as he began to change. Black armor materialized over his body and his arms molded into four incredibly sharp swords.

" **Slash Attack Mode**!" the demon shouted, "With this, the sharpness of my cursed blades will grow!"

A growl vibrated in Wendy's throat as she rose. She felt no more fear towards Exel. She _owned_ this space and she wasn't going to let him beat her on her territory.

 _This air...is under_ my _control!_ she growled to herself.

Once more the wind quickly began to gather around the demon in mass quantities, completely obscuring him from view.

"How futile!" he exclaimed, "There is nothing my cursed blades can't…"

Wendy stopped listening to the demon's words and concentrated. The half-Sky Dragon summoned the air from the surrounding areas and gathered it around Exel, who was feebly trying to cut his way out of the knot of swirling wind. However, every time he cut the wind, more just rushed in to take its place. While Exel was occupied in his fruitless task, Wendy gathered the last of her power into her hands and thrusted it at Exel.

The demon didn't see the attack coming and was easily overtaken by the wind. He was thrown back towards the original battle and crashed through the ground, leaving a long, deep trench in the ground before slamming into the base of a tree on the opposite side. A loud _crack_ thundered through the valley as the tree toppled over onto the demon, crushing his below its massive trunk. A moment later, a small cloud of dust puffed up on either side of the fallen tree.

Relief swept away the adrenaline that had kept Wendy going and all at once her exhaustion crashed down on her. Her **Dragon Force** had dissipated with the winds, leaving her dead tired. Carla stumbled over to the half-Sky Dragon, worry in her large brown eyes.

"Wendy!" she shouted as Wendy collapsed to her knees.

The half-Sky Dragon's scales had retreated back under her skin and when they had disappeared, exhaustion crashed down on her. **Dragon Force** had completely drained her magic, but thankfully not enough for her to pass out from magic exhaustion. Still, Wendy doubted that she'd be able to fight anymore.

"Wendy!" Carla shouted again, "Are you okay!?"

The bluenette nodded weakly, breathing heavily. "Y...Yeah...just t...tired…"

"Well rest then child! You pushed yourself too far again! It was too soon for you to pull of a spell of that magnitude!" The white cat scolded, tears pooling in her eyes, "You worried me sick! You could have been seriously hurt, Wendy!"

Wendy laughed lightly but couldn't find strength enough to speak to her friend. The half-Sky Dragon knew that Carla wasn't as mad as she sounded, in fact Wendy was sure she was proud of her. But Wendy knew that Carla understood what it takes to accomplish **Dragon Force** and how draining it is, both magically and emotionally.

After Carla finished fuming (or praising, depending on how you look at it), the two of them rested together, both simply relieved that the other was okay.

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Charging into a fight with Mard Geer was harder than Natsu had assumed it would be. He knew it was going to be a hard fight, but he didn't think it would be as hard as it really was. Even with his own powers and the support of two other half-dragons, they couldn't land an effective hit on the demon. Natsu managed to land several hits on Mard Geer at the start of the fight, but after a while, he kept coming up with the same fruitless results as Sting and Rogue. Thankfully however, their dragon scales protected them from most of the damage that the demon could deal, which only served to frustrate the demon. And vise versa, he frustrated them with his resilience to their attacks and a brief look around the clearing told Natsu that everyone was having the same problem.

Suddenly ice covered the ground for a few minutes before disappearing. Fortunately it didn't hinder the half-dragon's abilities to fight. On the flip side however, the ice also didn't hinder Mard Geer in the slightest. His cursed thorns still pierced the ground, through the ice and attacked the three half-dragons relentlessly, though they were just a little easier to destroy after they came through the frigid ice.

However, the ice completely disappeared as quickly as it had come, though it didn't make much difference if it was there or not. Their fight continued unaffected by the sudden appearance and disappearance of the strange purple ice. Until the wind went completely insane.

Natsu couldn't help but grin though. There was only one person capable of controlling wind like this and that was Wendy. Even from across the clearing, Natsu could hear Wendy's voice as she cast her spell that took out the demon she battled. The half-Fire Dragon practically glowed with pride for Wendy when he realized why she got so insanely powerful. He made a mental note to congratulate her on accomplishing **Dragon Force** once the fighting was over.

At that moment, Natsu realized that five of the ten demons had been defeated, though it looked like the other three battles appeared to be stalemates and the mages that had actually defeated their opponents were down for the count.

To Natsu's relief, Lucy appeared to be doing well in her fight against Jackal. However, the other Celestial mage seemed to have been knocked out and Lucy was now fighting on her own power. But Natsu couldn't tell if she was winning or not.

Unfortunately, Natsu was watching the other fights longer than he should have and was struck in the back by Sting, who had been turned into a projectile by Mard Geer. The half-White Dragon slammed into Natsu, who then flew into a different fight. It was one of the stalemates, or at least it looked like it was from a distance.

Natsu bowled right into the demon that one of the Sabertooth members was combating. The half-Fire Dragon didn't remember the name, but he remembered his face. Natsu would recognize that obviously dyed mint green hair anywhere. The demon that the pinkette crashed into was massive in stature, but his proportions were...odd. The demon looked like a giant meatball with spaghetti noodle limbs, a large singular eye in the center of its head and a crazed smile that took up more than half his face.

Mere moments before Natsu came crashing into their battle, the demon had his opponent tangled in its spindly fingers. For some reason, there was and electric yellow glow encasing him that seemed to cause the mage pain. When Natsu knocked the demon over, the demon was forced to release the mage from its grasp. The mage collapsed onto the dirt, gasping for breath.

The demon was less than thrilled by Natsu's intervention.

"You interrupted my soul collection! How much will that cost me!? How much!? How much!?" It wailed.

Natsu sprung to his feet, eyeing the monster wearily. "A...talking meatball?...You're not going to start shooting people with a laser that turns them into giant cheese wheels are you?"

The mage shot back up into sitting position, completely slack-jawed by Natsu's thoughtless comment. "WHAT GAVE YOU THAT IDEA!?"

Natsu turned his head towards the mage and crossed his arms. "What? I had a dream once about a spaghetti monster that turned people into giant cheese wheels! And it looked just like that!" he shouted pointing at the demon.

The mage's expression shifted from outraged confusion to just plain confusion. "What the heck goes on in that head of your's?"

The half-Fire Dragon shrugged. "Not anything you'd want to see."

Suddenly, there was an ear splitting battle cry behind him. Natsu's body reacted automatically and he jumped out of the way of the demon's noodle arms, which slammed through the ground where the pinkette previously stood.

"I know! I will take your souls as compensation! Give me your souls! Then give me your souls!" The demon shouted, "Once I tear your souls out, I'll tear them out again!"

As the demon was speaking, he was frantically trying to catch Natsu and the Sabertooth mage, but both were agile enough to elude its grasp.

"I think he's lost it." Natsu muttered dryly.

He wasn't too happy about getting pulled away from his primary fight, but the pinkette doubted that turning his back to this demon was a good idea. However, that didn't stop him from getting extremely annoyed by the stupid meatball monster.

Flames ignited around Natsu's fist as he prepared to punch the stupid thing's lights out, but the Saber mage grabbed his wrist, stopping him from doing so.

Natsu looked back at the mage for a moment before having to dodge another noodle arm.

"What was that for!?" He demanded, "I was gonna hit it!"

"You can't hurt this thing with magic!" The Saber mage exclaimed, "Believe me. I've tried. This thing just absorbs the 'soul of magic'!"

"What the heck is the 'soul of magic'?" Natsu asked, ducking another attack.

"The hell if I know!" the mage exclaimed as he leapt over the demon's arm as it swung for his ankles, "The point is, he'll absorb any magic you use on him and throw it back at you!"

Not much more was able to be said between the two mages because the demon's attacks grew faster, but fortunately, there wasn't any more that needed to be said. Natsu knew what he had to do.

The pinkette darted between the demon's limbs and punched him straight in his over-sized eye. No magic, just a good ol' knuckle sandwich. The demon was spongy and soft under his fist, but it still flew threw a tree trunk when Natsu's fist made impact with its face. The tree trunk split with a thunderous _crack_ and fell over directly at Natsu, who simply put his hands above his head and caught the falling tree in his hands. It was one of the heaviest things he'd ever lifted, but he somehow managed to hold the tree above his head, his shadow falling over the dazed demon.

A battle cry rose from Natsu's throat as he brought the tree trunk down repeatedly on the demon's head like a cartoonishly big club until the demon exploded into a cloud of dust (A/N: When you can't punch it, hit it with a tree trunk until it stops moving. It's super effective).

Once the demon had been obviously put permanently out of commission, Natsu dropped the tree off to the side, dusted the bits of bark and the demon dust from his hands and ran off in the direction of his own fight, leaving the Sabertooth mage completely miffed by what the half-Fire Dragon just did.

"MARD GEEEEERRRRRR!" Natsu shouted.

The pinkette ran up behind Mard Geer, fist cloaked in fire and nailed the demon in his turned back. That sent him lurching forward into the waiting fists of the Twin Dragons, who immediately attacked with a double breath attack.

However, their attacks were easily dodged by the demon, who leapt into the air and summoned a sea of cursed thorns under the three half-dragons' feet. Sting and Rogue managed to evade the attack; Rogue through his shadows and Sting through pure agility, Natsu however, stayed stationary and simply burned through the thorns.

The mere sight of Mard Geer excited rage within the half-Fire Dragon's heart. But not hate fueled by the memories of what the demon had done to Natsu, but what he could do to the people he cares for now that a good number of them were gathered in one place and fighting for their lives.

It didn't help that every time Mard Geer's face was in Natsu's line of sight, the demon wore a mocking, care-free smile. While the half-dragons poured forth every ounce of their supernatural strength, the demon hardly tried. It briefly occurred to Natsu that he should approach this from a different angle. But from what angle, he didn't know.

Hopefully he could figure one out before they all ran out of power.

…

Lucy's POV:

…

The fight against the demon, Jackal had been going fairly well considering the enemy's capabilities. Lucy and Yukino discovered early on that directly striking Jackal would place a stigma on them that would later explode. Yukino was the unfortunate one who discovered this fact when she had hit Jackal with a spinning back kick that made Lucy wince in half-sympathy for the demon. Moments later, the top of the Celestial mage's foot; the part that made contact with the side of Jackal's face, glowed with a swirling yellow stigma that soon exploded fiercely and threw her from her feet.

Thankfully, Yukino quickly recovered, though she greatly favored the foot that had not been blown up to stand on. Both mages made a silent agreement not to directly touch their enemy again and better kept their distance.

Jackal proceeded to mock them for their stupidity and explained to them that his curse allowed him to turn anything he wanted into an explosive device and as part of that, anything that touched his body was turned into a bomb.

Yukino called out one of her spirits; Libra, to aid them in their battle while Lucy summoned Sagittarius and Aries. The Celestial mage wished she could call out some of her other powerful spirits, like maybe Loke or Taurus, but she didn't have many other powerful spirits that were capable of ranged combat and the last thing she wanted was to put her dear friends in harm's way.

The Celestial mage's efforts appeared effective and Jackal was actually taking damage with the three Zodiac spirits combining their skills to aid each other. Libra and Aries used their power to hold Jackal down while Sagittarius made him into a pincushion with his arrows. However, they were only able to hold the demon down for so long at a time and for a brief moment, Lucy considered pulling her trump card.

 **Urano Metria**.

The spell was their best chance at defeating Jackal, but Lucy was uneasy. She didn't know if she had fully recovered from using it the first time around and she didn't know for sure if the spell would actually finish the job. If it didn't, Lucy would be emmensially drained from casting it and would be little use in the fight.

But as time dragged on, the spirits were able to hold Jackal still for less and less time. Sagittarius was an amazing archer, but it seemed that Jackal could eliminate the projectiles before they reached him when he wasn't occupied with Libra and Aries, making Sagittarius unable to land more than two or three arrows on him.

And then Yukino was taken out of the picture.

One moment when Jackal was free of the Celestial spirit's grasps, he got close enough to Yukino without her noticing, that he managed to knock her out with a powerful explosion that threw her into a pile of rubble. The white haired mage struck her head against the rocks and remained there, unmoving, a dark red line of blood running down her face from the point of impact.

With her summoner down, Libra's connection to the human realm was severed and she disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving Aries and Sagittarius to aid Lucy. However, their efforts were null and void as even though their enemy made no attempts to dodge, any attack they made did no visible damage, though they did provide obvious discomfort when they did strike him.

Jackal was approaching Yukino, as she was unable to defend herself against him. With little forethought, Lucy unhooked her whip from her belt and snapped it at the demon. It wrapped tightly around Jackal's wrist as he reached for Yukino, much to the demon's surprise and with a strong yank, the demon was pulled off his feet and away from the prone mage. The demon stumbled over his own feet and tripped onto the ground.

Out of the corner of Lucy's eye, she saw three little shapes surround Yukino. The Celestial mage recognized them as Lector, Frosh, and Happy. The three cats hastily picked the unconscious mage up and with some effort started to carry her out of the line of fire.

Knowing her friend was safe, Lucy was able to focus her full attention on the fight in front of her. When she had thrown Jackal down, Sagittarius took the opportunity to assault his enemy with a volley of arrows. But even with him looking more like a porcupine than a dog demon, Jackal still rose and he smirked at Lucy.

"Looks like someone forgot what my curse can do."

Lucy's whip, which was still coiled around Jackal's wrist, suddenly began to glow with a harsh yellow light as a line of explosions ran along it until it reached her. At that moment, Lucy released the whip as the chain of explosions reached the handle. The magic whip had disappeared completely and the handle was thrown out of sight and way out of Lucy's grasp by the shock wave.

Jackal's threw his hands towards Aries and Sagittarius and both spirits were swallowed by massive explosions. The blast rocked the ground and Lucy felt the shock wave shake her down to her very foundation and the connections that kept her spirits anchored to this plane go slack.

Now alone, Jackal faced Lucy with a wicked grin.

Pointed ivory teeth were shown clearly by Jackal's wide smile. In a way, it was sort of like Natsu's smile, but there was one major difference. Jackals smile had none of the warmth Natsu's did. Instead it was full of a bloodlust and malice that made Lucy's skin crawl.

Yellow light shone below Lucy's feet. Horrible recognition flashed through Lucy's mind and in that same second, she dove left as the ground exploded where she previously stood. The blonde mage successfully evaded the blast, but she was immediately struck by another explosion that tore painfully through her left leg.

It hurt a lot, but the Celestial mage still forced herself to stand on that leg, though her face no doubt reflected her pain to Jackal's amusement.

The demon approached her and Lucy realized she didn't have another choice. She extended her hand towards Jackal.

" _ **Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens. All the stars, far and wide show me thy brilliance. Oh Tetrabiblos, I am the ruler of the stars. Aspect become complete. Open thy malevolent gate. Oh 88 stars of the Heavens, SHINE**_ _!"_

Celestial energy swelled in the air, turning the atmosphere a shining yellow mixed with colors of pink, blue and purple. The magic built up and surged violently towards Jackal. It struck the demon hard and he shouted in pain as he was thrown across the clearing.

When the spell wore off, Lucy immediately felt the drain. She had summoned two spirits at once, something that she didn't do often, and then proceeded to cast an advanced Celestial spell. That didn't have a lot of magic left and Lucy hoped that **Urano Metria** was enough to finish Jackal off.

However that didn't seem to be the case.

Jackal was greatly injured by Lucy's spell, but he still stood and started to stalk towards her with death in his eyes.

Lucy shakily pulled Scorpio's key from her keyring.

" **O-Open! Gate of the Scorpion: Scorpio**!"

The bell sounded and the Scorpion spirit appeared. His seemingly chill personality had visibly disappeared and once again Scorpio went straight to work, apparently sensing the gravity of the situation.

" **Sand Blaster**!"

It pained Lucy greatly to watch her precious friend fight the battle for her, but Lucy was running out of options. Two of her spirits were out of commission, she couldn't cast **Urano Metria** a second time and on top of that, she barely had enough power left to sustain Scorpio, let alone a second spirit.

Her situation seemed rather bleak.

Then she remembered something. Something the Celestial Spirit King himself said to her. It was so long ago and in light of what had happened recently, Lucy had actually forgot.

 _The power of the stars that lays in you must soon be awakened, or this world shall burn_.

And Yukino. She possessed Zodiac Keys like Lucy did and according to Minerva, only people related to Celestial beings could use them. With this new information mingling with the old, Lucy felt she vaguely understood what the Celestial Spirit King was talking about.

Lucy wasn't sure if he meant what she thinks he did, but she was out of options. All she could do was hope her hunch was right.

Somewhat reluctantly, she closed her eyes and reached within herself. She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but she certainly wasn't prepared for her body to suddenly become lighter as a faint golden-blue light was projected against the canvas of her eyelids. Panic settled over the Celestial mage, almost making her open her eyes, until she recognized the light around her was her own magic. She wasn't sure how, but she had retreated within her own mind.

For a few moments, she saw nothing but the swirling celestial energy that surround her when suddenly, above her appeared a bright white light that shone like a star. It radiated pure celestial power, much like what Lucy felt from the Celestial Spirit King. Lucy reached for it, but however, she was unable to grasp it.

Unfortunately, before she could make an attempt to reach for the light again, the connection between her and Scorpio was suddenly severed, sending massive ripples through the landscape. Lucy's eyes snapped open when a heavy weight slammed into Lucy's gut, sending her skidding across the ground before she came to a stop, laying prone on her stomach. The Celestial mage had closed her eyes against the pain as the stone rubbed painfully against her skin.

Before she could get up something held her down and a hand wrapped around her head.

"ALL OF YOU STOP WHAT YOU'RE DOING, OR I BLOW THIS LITTLE PRINCESS'S HEAD OFF!" He shouted.

All around her, the sounds of fighting suddenly stopped. Lucy painfully cracked an eye open and felt her heart drop a little. Everyone who was still able to stand was looking on to Lucy with deep concern, Natsu especially. The half-Fire Dragon's scales were flaring angrily with a bright red glow. The members of Tartarous who still stood had also stopped fighting and were watching. All of them watched the scene with interest. Lucy didn't think that they knew what Jackal was trying to do either. Sting and Rogue were still on guard, eyes watching each standing demon with caution, and the Celestial mage could tell that Erza, Rufus and Minerva were watching their opponent and her allies out of the corner of their eyes as well. The only one who didn't seem to care what the other demons were doing was Natsu.

The pinkette's obsidian eyes were dialed in on Jackal with an intensity of which she had never seen. She's seen Natsu get angry plenty of times, but he looked like an actual dragon at this moment. A dragon that someone dared to piss off by threatening something it cared about.

Waves of magic power were rolling off of him, so much that Lucy could easily feel it from where she was. Under Natsu's feet, the ground started to sizzle and the air around him rippled like a desert mirage in the presence of the small, almost white hot flames that danced across the half-Fire Dragon's scales. Lucy wasn't sure what was going on until Sting spoke up.

"I-I don't believe it...he actually could pull it off?" Sting murmured in amazement, "Natsu-san activated **Dragon Force**!"

The Celestial mage had not the faintest idea of what the half-White Dragon was talking about, but from the expression on his face, she could deduce that what Natsu was doing was incredible.

"You let Lucy go you b******!" He hissed angrily.

A harsh buzz rang in Lucy's head as a yellow glow started behind her.

"Ah ah ah. I wouldn't test me if I were you, half breed!" Jackal threatened mockingly, "Wouldn't want your little girlfriend's head to be imploded, would you?"

Mard Geer chuckled. "Excellent work Jackal. As usual." The demon looked towards Natsu, "You heard him son of Igneel. If you don't surrender then the girl will die."

Hesitation rippled across the half-Fire Dragon's face, disrupting the enraged expression on his face. Lucy's heart dropped. He was considering it. The Celestial mage opened her mouth to speak, to _shout_ at Natsu not to surrender for any reason, but Jackal pressed her head harder against the ground, pinning her jaw between the rest of her head and the dirt.

"Be quiet." Jackal hissed, "Trying to speak will only make me kill you faster."

The blond fought under Jackal's grasp, but the demon's physical strength far exceeded her own, making it a waste of time and energy to try to struggle. Now Lucy could only watch helplessly as the wheels of thought turned in her friend's head.

 _If he_ does _surrender, I'll die anyway!_ Lucy screamed in her mind, _What do these monsters want from him anyway!?_

However that question was quickly swept away into the recesses of Lucy's thoughts as a new question swam in her mind.

How can I help Natsu?

The helpless look on his face at the moment was heartbreaking, but Lucy didn't know what to do. She couldn't summon anymore spirits and she couldn't cast **Urano Metria** again.

A feeling of hopelessness crept into her heart.

But once again, the blond thought of the Celestial Spirit King's words and that strange light inside her. The hopeless feeling faded, replaced by determination. She couldn't give up. Not yet anyway.

For a second time, Lucy retreated within herself and the comforting glow of her magic surrounded her once again, though it was dimmer than before. The glowing star was still hanging above her head. Lucy reached for it once again, this time with much more determination to succeed. She reached and reached, but even in this ethereal landscape the power she so desperately needed always seemed out of reach.

She began to panic, Lucy knew she was running out of time. Suddenly, a familiar energy hit her, making her surroundings ripple violently, like it had when Scorpio was sent back to the Celestial Spirit World. When the ripples passed through Lucy, she immediately recognized who the energy belonged to.

Next to her, the Water Bearer, Aquarius appeared. Her form was shimmery and translucent, like what most people believe a spirit would look like. Aquarius locked eyes with Lucy, but there was something in her eyes that was unsettling. The water spirit's eyes held a grave, serious light in them rather than a comical and mocking shine.

Before Lucy could ponder the spirit's sudden appearance

" _Lucy. Keep going. You can't give up now, you're almost there!"_ Aquarius urged, her voice sounding distant like they were talking to each other through water.

 _A-Aquarius…?_ Lucy murmured in confusion.

" _Yes it's me brat."_ She said.

 _H-How are you here Aquarius? I-I don't understand!_ The Celestial mage exclaimed.

" _That isn't important right now. We have bigger fish to fry. You want to save your friends, right?"_ The spirit asked impatiently.

 _Of course I do!_

" _Then reach farther Lucy!"_ Aquarius ordered.

The Celestial mage obeys without question and strains herself to reach the untapped source. She got closer, her fingers were _inches_ from it, but she still came up short.

 _I can't reach it!_ She exclaimed, panicked.

The spirit let out a heavy sigh. " _Do I have to do everything myself?"_

Lucy looked at Aquarius. But the spirit wasn't next to her, rather she was below her. It briefly occurred to the blonde that she had been rising towards the light. She had risen far enough for Aquarius to look like a small toy below her.

However, Aquarius held out her urn and crystal clear blue water began to pool at the mouth of the silver urn. Lucy felt her heart drop as she knew what the temperamental water spirit was going to do, but why did she seem so grave about it? The expression on the Celestial spirit's face resembled that of someone who knew they were about to die. Much to Lucy's horror, Aquarius's already transparent form faded even more as more water gathered in her urn.

 _A-Aquarius. What are you doing?_ Lucy asked.

" _I'm giving you the push you need. Be thankful brat, because I'm using my soul to do this."_

Lucy's eyes widened in horror. _You're soul!? Aquarius, that sounds like that could kill you!_

" _It could, but it will definitely crack my key."_ The spirit sighed, " _You won't be able to summon me for a while, if that's the only thing that happens."_

 _I can't ask you to do that Aquarius! You're my friend!_ Lucy protested.

" _So's that half-dragon who's considering giving himself up to save your sorry hide. Are you going to give up on him just because you selfishly chose me over him?"_

Lucy wanted nothing more than to protest against what Aquarius had just said, but the water spirit was right. If she didn't let Aquarius do this, then Natsu would surrender himself to Tartarous and then who knows what would happen next. Probably a lot of people dying. Lucy wouldn't get this chance again.

Taking a deep breath, she made her choice.

 _Do it Aquarius!_ She ordered.

The spirit 'humphed' below her. " _Good choice. Teach those animals a lesson, Lucy. And one more thing. Your mother would be proud of you."_

With that final message, the water blasted from Aquarius's urn in a massive torrent. Bigger than it has ever been before. After the water had been fired, Aquarius disappeared. Lucy felt her vanish and felt something far worse. She felt a horrible, sudden sensation in her heart, like someone had snapped metal inside it as Aquarius disappeared, but Lucy didn't get to dwell on that feeling. The water hit Lucy and carried her up to the star. The Celestial mage hardened her resolve and reached for it one more time.

And she grabbed it.

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Natsu didn't know what to do. His friend's life was being threatened right in front of him, and from the looks of it Lucy had fallen unconscious. It had surprised him as much as it did to Sting and Rogue when he had activated **Dragon Force**. The pinkette didn't mean to once again achieve the advanced move that he had used to strike down Brain when he fought the Oracion Seis. He just wanted to protect Lucy. He wanted to protect his friends. And most of all; he wanted to burn Tartarous to ashes.

But something stopped him. That something being that Jackal was threatening to explode Lucy's head. Even with the sudden burst of power that **Dragon Force** provided, Natsu doubted that he'd be able to make it across the clearing in time to stop Jackal before he killed Lucy. And he sure wasn't going to risk it.

Then Mard Geer said that if he gave up, then Lucy would be spared.

Natsu wasn't sure how to take that offer. He knew it was a trap. He _knew_ that if he did, then Lucy would die regardless. Well, not just Lucy, but everyone would die. But was it so bad that there was still a chance, even if it was small, that Mard Geer _might_ keep his word and let Lucy go?

The half-Fire Dragon's eyes wandered to the unconscious blond. Even though she wasn't awake, her face was contorted into an expression of distress. He couldn't explain why, but it made his heart _hurt_. It _hurt_ worse than any physical pain the half-Fire Dragon had ever endured. It shouldn't have, but it did.

"Natsu…" Erza said, breaking through his thoughts, "...Please think of Lucy. This isn't what she'd want you to do!"

Natsu's brow furrowed in frustration. _I don't know what to do!_ He exclaimed in his mind, _Either choice seems equally bad! What do I do?_

Suddenly, the ground shock and there was a bright flash of light that was followed by a massive explosion. The shock wave of the explosion carried everyone off their feet and Jackal was thrown violently into the trees. A great cloud of dust was stirred up, but was cleared by a very familiar voice.

" **Stardress: Aquarius Form**!"

The dust cleared, revealing Lucy standing at the epicenter of the explosion. Somehow her outfit had changed from the white ruffled outfit she was wearing when they first started to fight. Instead she was wearing a blue crop-top with a gold zigzag pattern with long, ruffled bell-sleeves and a similarly colored wrap skirt. Some of the Celestial mage's hair had been pulled into two twin ponytails while the rest hung loosely. How the half-Fire Dragon knew all these fashion terms, he did not know, probably a side-effect of hanging out with Lucy, but the sudden change of attire wasn't even the strangest part. She was glowing with a new, strange power. Like, literally glowing. Her brown eyes met his for a moment, then suddenly shifted to the space behind him.

Lucy suddenly extended her hand as a sphere of water rapidly gathered and fired from her palm. It wizzed over Natsu's shoulder and struck something behind him before Sting even finished shouting "Look out!".

Natsu whipped around to see that there had been a mass of thorns penetrating the ground behind him, ready to pierce him through. The water had cut through the cursed thorns that now laid limply in a puddle of crystal clear blue water.

Mard Geer, whose hand was suspended in the air, wore an unusual expression of disbelief. The pinkette put two and two together and his expression sank into a deep scowl, his flames reigniting. He was mad at Mard Geer, but he was more mad at himself for letting his guard down on the battlefield. Especially when his back was facing his enemy.

"Thanks Luce. You really saved my arse." He scoffed dryly, "Not like you haven't done it before."

Lucy chuckled behind him, somewhat forcibly though. "You need to stop leaving yourself open like that Natsu."

"SPEAK FOR YOURSELF!" Jackal's voice exclaimed.

Natsu's head snapped in Lucy's direction, and to his horror, Jackal was pouncing at Lucy. Fortunately, the blonde was one step ahead. With a seemingly effortless sweep of her hands, a shell of water rose from the ground behind her. The demon slammed face first into the water like he hit a brick wall.

Then faster than anyone could process, even Natsu, the half-Fire Dragon had sprinted towards Jackal; fists blazing, and punched him in the side of the face. With the added strength that **Dragon Force** gave him, a blood chilling crunch of Jackal's jaw breaking as he shot across the clearing. The demon flew into the side of the mountain and crashed through several layers of rock before a large puff of dust came out of the hole the demon left. Lucy's water shield fell and she offered a friendly, yet sassy smile to Natsu. But there was another emotion in that look that the half-Fire Dragon couldn't name.

At least until he saw the tears welling in the corners of Lucy's eyes.

"Luc-"

However, the Celestial mage cut him off. "Natsu! You're fist!" Lucy shouted, sounding panicked.

Looking down at his fist, there was a glowing yellow stigma shining on his fist. It burned violently and smelled of gunpowder. His eyes widened. Without much thought, he pushed Lucy away from him and put his fist to mouth and sucked in the stigma as it exploded. The explosion felt like nothing to Natsu thanks to his scales, but it left an awful taste in his mouth that made his nose scrunch in disgust.

"He...ate Jackal's explosion?" Kyoka muttered, eyes wide.

Lucy was equally surprised by the half-Fire Dragon's actions, but her expression settled into relief. Mard Geer, however, looked visibly annoyed. However, he recomposed himself and snapped his fingers. The sound echoed hollowly through the valley and cursed thorn vines exploded from the ground. They coiled around everyone within reach, including Natsu and Lucy, and carried them into the air.

Once again, without any thought whatsoever, Natsu took hold of Lucy's wrist before she could be pulled out of his reach. The half-Fire Dragon inhaled deeply, gathering fire within his gut. When a sufficient amount of magic had been gathered he aimed his head down towards the base of the cursed thorns.

" **Fire Dragon's Roar**!"

Natsu's breath attack easily burned through the vines that restrained him and Lucy. Immediately, gravity took over and they began to fall. Since Natsu still had a grip on Lucy's wrist, he pulled the Celestial mage close and tucked an arm under the crook of her legs and releasing her wrist, he swept the other arm behind her back.

Flames ignited under Natsu's feet and slowed their fall until his feet hit the ground. However, when the two were no longer in danger of falling, Natsu didn't put the Celestial mage down. He just kind of stood there glaring daggers into Mard Geer's face while cradling Lucy in his arms. In all honesty, he sort of forgot that he was even holding her.

At least until she spoke up.

"U-Uh...Natsu. You can put me down now…"

The half-Fire Dragon was thankful for his red scales since they covered his cheeks, which at the moment felt a little hotter than usual.

Immediately, Natsu obeyed and dropped his arms away. And unceremoniously dropped Lucy completely unexpectedly like a hot potato.

The half-Fire Dragon doubted that was the right way to put her down and had a feeling that Lucy wouldn't be too thrilled with him.

Sure enough, Lucy shot straight up, eyes burning was a fierce fire.

"WHY THE HECK DID YOU DROP ME LIKE THAT!?" she shouted.

The pinkette instinctively laced his fingers behind his head and stuck his bottom lip out a little. And then said the first thing he thought of.

"You were heavy. How else was I supposed to put you down?"

Natsu looked at Lucy out of the corner of his eye and almost screamed. The Celestial mage could have been mistaken for the embodiment of Death himself with the look she was giving him. She opened her mouth to speak the words that would no doubt finish the pinkette off, but thankfully someone stopped her.

"As entertaining as watching you two squabble is...COULD YOU DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS!" Sting shouted from above.

It took Natsu a moment to register that all his friends had been tangled in Mard Geer's cursed thorns and had a front row seat to Natsu and Lucy's little squabble. The mages were fighting against the bindings with all their might, but even the Sabertooth half mythics couldn't break through with their arms constricted against their bodies. Lucy and Natsu glanced each other. Thankfully, the blonde's rage had disappeared and instead was replaced by a deep concern.

Suddenly Natsu got an idea.

All his friends were out of the way and all the demons were standing in one spot. Even better, Natsu's **Dragon Force** was still going strong and Lucy looked like she was ready to kick butt.

"Hey Luce." he grinned, "I've got an idea."

A small smile tugged at Lucy's face. "Uh oh. That can't be good. What is it?"

Natsu grin grew even wider. " **Unison Raid**."

The Twin Dragons used this technique in their fight against Natsu and even though they blatently disregarded the foundation of a half-dragon's power, the attack they accomplished had been capable of a lot of damage. Now Natsu had never performed a **Unison Raid** before, but if he was doing it with Lucy, the half-Fire Dragon knew without a doubt that it would be more than enough to destroy the remaining members of Tartarous.

The blonde's brown eyes widened in surprise but when Natsu held out his hand to her, a smile blossomed on her face and she firmly took it in her own without a shred of hesitation, interlacing their fingers together and bridging their magics together.

Words failed to describe what it felt like to hold Lucy's hand. Both of them were overflowing with magic and when they're hands touched, Fire Dragon Magic and Celestial Spirit Magic began to mix and merge into one magic.

Very quickly, their magical auras manifested around themselves. The demons in front of them, looked concerned, but unfortunately, they weren't going to stay still and let their enemy's power continue to build like this.

"Destroy them!" Mard Geer ordered.

The other demons didn't hesitate and charged at them. Time slowed and for a split second, Natsu could hear Lucy's thoughts. He could feel her heartbeat and the ebb and flow of her magic. And he knew she could feel his too. It was like they were one, singular entity.

Slowly, they raised their hands towards their approaching enemies.

The magic condensed around them in swirling spheres of orange Dragon fire and crystal blue Celestial water. The charging demons halted in horror as the magic pressure grew greater and greater.

Natsu glanced at Lucy, who glanced at him. The Celestial mage nodded and at the same time, they released their hold on the energy that had built up into an army of volleyball sized orbs. When they released the spell, it was all over in a split second.

The energy barreled towards their enemies, streaking through the air like deadly shower of meteors. A few of the orbs flew off course and struck the thorns that held the others and destroyed them. In a blinding flash, the spell converged on the demons and struck them, exploding violently on impact. The shock wave was stronger than Natsu anticipated and it blew the half-Fire Dragon off his feet, and unfortunately, Lucy was thrown too. Natsu reached out to grab her hand and she did too, but they just got too far apart too quickly for them to take hold of the other.

No one was spared from the aftershock of Natsu and Lucy's **Unison Raid**. Everyone was tossed around the clearings like rag dolls, even the unconscious members of Sabertooth were tossed mercilessly into the treeline and into the side of the mountains.

Natsu crashed through a couple trees and was soon enveloped in a cloud of dust that sent the half-Fire Dragon into a coughing fit. He felt really weak all of a sudden and looking at his arms, he could see why. His **Dragon Force** had disappeared along with his scales.

It took a lot of effort, but he managed to sit up though the action made his head spin like a top. His gaze drifted up towards the scene of their battle. The ground was still smoldering and peppered with deep, blackened craters but as far as the half-Fire Dragon could see, none of the Tartarous members survived the attack.

For a brief moment, Natsu's eyes travelled around the clearing, searching for a spot of scarlet red lying among the rubble. Unfortunately, Natsu could not spot E.N.D.'s book.

 _Must have gotten destroyed._ The pinkette thought.

His eyes drifted once again to the forms of his friends who were slowly picking themselves up from the ground. They were all smiling with relief and hugging each other. Even some of the people who were unconscious before were up once again to join in the celebration.

However, a flash of gold out of the corner of his eye suddenly grabbed Natsu's attention. Kneeling among the rubble was Lucy. Her outfit was back to normal; though it was thoroughly ruined, her hair was a mess and she was covered head-to-toe in cuts, bruises and dirt. But what stood out to Natsu was that while everyone was celebrating not too far off, she was staring mournfully at something cupped in her hands.

The pinkette's eyes widened when he caught sight of something shining as it ran down Lucy's cheeks. Tears.

Somehow, the half-Fire Dragon found the strength to stand and painfully slowly, walk towards the Celestial mage. Her head perked up in his direction and she hastily hid whatever was the source of her sadness in her hands while wiping away the tears that ran down her face.

However, Natsu was standing in front of her before he squatted down to her level.

"Lucy...why are you crying?" Natsu asked, with a gentleness that surprised even him.

The blonde refused to look at him, for what Natsu guessed was to hide her tears from him behind the protective curtain her golden hair provided as it shielded her face from his view. Hurt pinged through his chest. Part of it was that his best friend was crying, but the other part was that she wouldn't tell him what was making her so sad.

"Lucy...please. Tell me what's wrong."

A choked sob came from the Celestial mage and she slowly uncupped her hands to reveal a shining golden key seated in her small hands. It wasn't the remarkable golden color or the magic pulsating from the key that caught Natsu's attention, but the deep, webbed cracks that ran through the key.

With a ping of deep sadness, Natsu recognized it as one of Lucy's Golden Zodiac Keys. Judging from the symbol painted on it, it was Aquarius's. Lucy had mentioned to him once that Aquarius was her first Celestial Spirit, and her first friend. The spirit meant a lot to her and now Aquarius's key was cracked.

It looked horribly fragile, like the smallest misstep would shatter it forever. His shock was momentarily lapsed by the realization that Lucy's hands were trembling. Natsu quickly took them in his own and Lucy's trembling slowed.

For the first time in what felt like forever, she looked up at him with her watery chocolate orbs. Her bottom lip was shaking violently like she was trying to hold in another sob, but that didn't stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks.

"Hey Luce. Don't cry. It doesn't suit you at all any more than the title of 'lady' does." He said sternly.

"B-But...Aquarius...she might ne-never come back! A-And it's all my fault!" She sobbed, her voice gradually getting stronger, "I was too weak to reach it on my own! Aquarius used the power of her soul to get me there!"

Natsu blinked. He had no idea whatsoever what the blonde was talking about, but it seemed to be what was causing her to cry.

The half-Fire Dragon squeezed her hands reassuringly. "Don't blame yourself Lucy. Ever. If Aquarius did that, it was because she _wanted_ to. And don't _ever_ call yourself weak Lucy, because you're anything but weak. Look over there." He said pointing behind him, " _You_ did that."

A small chuckle came from the girl. " _We_ did that Natsu. I-I would never be able to do that alone."

"Well neither could I!" Natsu laughed, "I couldn't do anything without y'ah Luce!"

The Celestial mage's eyes widened a little as the tears finally seemed to stop, much to Natsu's joy.

"And don't worry about Aquarius." Natsu assured, "If it can be broken, I'm sure we can find a way to fix it!"

Lucy looked down at the cracked key in her hands. "Y-You really think so?"

Natsu beamed. "Sure! You're helping me find my wings, aren't y'ah? If you can do that, I'm sure you can find a way to fix Aquarius's key!"

This finally seemed to be the final push Lucy needed to finally stop crying. The familiar smile that Natsu has grown to love spread across her face. Lucy cupped her hands around Aquarius's key and took her hands back from Natsu.

"Alright!" She grinned brightly.

"Hey! Natsu-san, Lucy-san!" Wendy's voice shouted from across the clearing, "Minerva-san is going to take us back to the Sabertooth guild!"

Natsu chuckled and stood up, looking down on Lucy. He held out a hand to help her up.

"Come on Lucy. What do you say? Shall we continue our adventure?" He asked.

Lucy looked back up at him, her smile growing wider. Clutching Aquarius's key gently in one hand, she reached out with her other and took his hand.

She laughed lightly. "You...really know how to cheer someone up, Natsu."

…

 **A/N: Was that worth the wait? Sorry this chapter took so long to post but it's insane how long it is and how little free time I had to write this. I hope you all didn't mind the short little paragraphs from the other fights even though there wasn't any dialogue. I decided I wouldn't make all of them decisive victories and that I'd put a little something in there for those fights but the stalemates wouldn't have any dialogue.**

 **And finally, the long promised Stardress has appeared! *pops party popper* And a NaLu Unison Raid on top of that! I hope it lived up to your expectations**

 **There's going to be a "short" recuperation/transition chapter and then the NaLu fluff I promised more than a dozen chapters ago will be delivered :)**

 **See y'ah all next chapter and hopefully it won't be as long a wait :)**

 **Oh. Wait just a moment. There's still a little more left...**

...

No One's POV:

...

While our heroes returned to Roba to rest and celebrate their victory over their enemy, an unknown shadow watched from the shadows of the forest. Only when the mages had all disappeared, it emerged from its hiding place. The creature was roughly four or five feet tall, but bore a resemblance to a human girl with black rabbit ears sticking up from her short cropped hair and wore a stark white lab coat that rustled as she walked. However, the girl gave off the same presence as the members of Tartarous.

The presence of a demon.

She walked across the clearing at an alarmingly quick pace. Almost like she was gliding across it. The demon slid past the dusty remains of her fallen comrades and across the creator filled battle field until she found what she was looking for. Hidden under the canopy of a bush, was a scarlet red book with three letters embroidered on the cover.

E. N. And D.

The cover was slightly charred, but that was to be expected from what it went through.

The demon girl stopped in front of it, knelt down and picked it up. A crazed laugh escaped her lips as they curled into a wicked smile.

"It won't be long now Master. I'll be sure to free you."

...

 **A/N: Okay. Done now.**

 **See you all next chapter :)**


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N: The Tartarous/Blood Eagle Arc is finally over! And now I will drown you all in a sea of fluff and it's going to be fantastic. After I do a little plot development of course. Still going to be fantastic :)**

 **Reviews:**

 **NaluhasNashi** **: Thank you so much, I'm glad the wait was worth it :)**

 **Moon Stone Tiger Lily** **: Hooorrrraaaayyyy!**

 **Alaina Kuski** **: Indeed…**

 **SunflowerChrysalis** **: Oh my gosh. So many reviews. SO MANY REVIEWS! You are an amazing person for taking the time out of your day to review my story and I'm glad you enjoy it :)**

 **Kaggy-Higgs88** **: Thank you :)**

 **Thank you for your patience and apologises for the wait.**

 **Enjoy! :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Everything seemed to be going well after Minerva teleported everyone back to the guild hall. Miraculously, no one was killed during the fight with Tartarous. Not even the people who were knocked unconscious. But that didn't mean that they weren't bruised and battered from being thrown around like ragdolls during the fight. Healing them was fairly simple, though that responsibility largely fell on Wendy, as she was the one with the most medical experience, though Erza did lend her assistance to the half-Sky Dragon. Sort of.

The people who actually fought against Tartarous were the ones who needed the medical attention the most. Juvia needed immediate treatment for anti-Ether poisoning, Yukino had a minor concussion and a sprained ankle, Gray was barely able to stay conscious, Ogra had multiple cracked ribs, Minerva and Erza had deep cuts, Carla had a bad head wound, and somewhere along the line Rufus sprained his wrist. Thankfully, those were about the worst of the injuries. At least the physical ones.

The battle had also taken an emotional toll on some of them. Gray was much more reclusive than normal and only Juvia seemed to be able to provide comfort to the ice mage as she was the only one he was willing to talk to. Lucy wasn't sure what had happened to him, but at the moment she wasn't really sure she wanted to know. She was thankful though that Juvia did appear to be providing some sort of emotional comfort to Gray.

Besides, she had some emotional baggage to struggle with herself. Since they returned, Aquarius's cracked key hadn't left Lucy's hand. Natsu had stayed with her to reassure her that everything was going to be okay, but he got pulled away by Wendy and Erza because the half-Fire Dragon had reopened the wound on his side for the second time. Not to mention to tend to all the other wounds he had acquired during the battle.

Natsu was probably currently cowering in the Titania's shadow as she scolded him for being reckless while Wendy worked diligently to heal the wound in the infirmary. Lucy would be there too, but she had already been tended to and she didn't want to get in the way. Thankfully she had somehow scraped by with only some minor burns and cuts during her scuffle with Jackal. She only wished Aquarius was so lucky.

Loke had stopped by earlier to inform Lucy that Aquarius was fine, but in a semi-fragile condition due to the crack that had formed in her key, but other than that she was doing fine and should be back to her normal self soon. This brought much relief to the Celestial Spirit mage, though she realized that she might not be able to summon the water spirit until the key was repaired for risk of damaging it further. Or breaking it.

Thankfully, with Loke's reassuring message in mind, Lucy managed to steer her train of thought from the matter of Aquarius's cracked key to a different matter she needed to ponder.

The **Unison Raid** that had decimated Tartarous's forces.

The **Unision Raid** that Lucy had performed with Natsu.

Lucy had never done a **Unison Raid** before, of course she never needed to before that moment. She didn't know what to expect or what it would feel like to fuse her magic with someone else's, but the feeling of performing a **Unison Raid** with Natsu was...incredible.

It felt right.

Then Lucy remembered the purpose of their journey. They had to find Natsu's soulmate so he could get his wings.

Lucy knew that it was inevitable and once that happened, the adventures would more than likely stop. It would be unbearably awkward if Lucy hung around, but the thought of having to leave Natsu and the adventures they had behind made her...sad. She had tried not to let that bother her, in fact when the adventure started, it didn't really bother her much; if not at all back then.

But now...it did.

Maybe it was because back then, Lucy clung to the idea that she wouldn't become attached to the half-Fire Dragon, but **Unison Raiding** with Natsu really brought into perspective how attached she had gotten to him without even realizing it. And how much she didn't want to let go.

She scoffed to herself.

Had she really…?

No. She _did_. Lucy absolutely did.

Absently, Lucy's eyes drifted around the room, drinking in the lush furnishings.

The Celestial Mage was sitting alone at a desk in a spare room in the Sabertooth guildhall. The room had a large window overlooking the city streets and was richly decorated with plush couches and even a few beds for guests. The members were allowing Lucy, Natsu, and the Fairy Tail members to stay in this room until they could leave, but no one was in much of a hurry to go yet.

At the moment, everyone else was downstairs partying and celebrating the victory and that they were all alive or in the infirmary getting treated. Everyone except for Lucy.

The blonde felt out of place among the happy mages. She felt unusually anxious and this probably stemmed from the sheer amount of stuff on her mind. And it wasn't just Aquarius's key and her feelings about Natsu that were bothering her.

The matter of her father was still a huge issue. He went as far as to hire a _dark guild_ to bring her home, not once, but _twice_.

And what would stop him from trying a third time? Jude Heartfilla got what he wanted when he wanted it and if someone had to be hurt in the process, so be it.

Lucy was lucky that none of her friends hadn't been hurt during the first two attempts, but she doubted that she'd be so lucky the next time around and she knew that there was going to be a next time.

Finally, it dawned on her that there was no other option.

She really didn't want to have to go through with this, but the last thing she wanted was for her friends to get caught up in this mess anymore than they already have.

Taking a deep breath, Lucy pulled out a piece of paper, picked up a pen and started writing.

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Natsu winced as his eyes watered in pain as the disinfectant seeped into his wound. The vile liquid hurt more than the actual wound. Natsu had been unfortunate enough to be dragged down the the infirmary to get his wounds checked out by Wendy, and strangely Erza, who had Requipped into a nurse's outfit in order to assist Wendy.

Happy and Carla were there as well to lend their aid, though Carla seemed to be more helpful than Happy. The blue cat was flying above the infirmary, surveying the patients while Carla wrapped bandages in a practiced manner.

"Ow, ow ow! That huuurrrrttttssss!" He whinned as the disinfectant soaked cotton swab touched his side.

"Sorry Natsu-san, but I told you to be careful not to reopen it." Wendy apologized as she applied said disinfectant.

"You need to be more careful Natsu." Erza scolded from the other side of the room, "What if you get seriously injured again and we aren't there to help heal you?"

At that moment, Wendy glanced over her shoulder to check on Erza's progress with the remaining injured members, but the half-Sky Dragon's expression dropped to one of horror and mild confusion.

"E-Erza-san, that isn't how you lay bandages…" Wendy pointed out, her face slightly paler than before.

Somehow, the Titania had managed to tangle two unfortunate members of Sabertooth in an elaborate web of bandages that seemed to be causing them a fair amount of discomfort as they had practically been bound together in a very odd, and uncomfortable looking position.

"You seem to be causing them more harm than good!" Carla exclaimed, sounding a little furious.

"Oh. My apologies. You may strike me as punishment." Erza stated humbley.

Happy sweat-dropped as he looked down on the scene from above. "Erza, it might be best to leave the medical stuff to Wendy."

The redhead nodded. "Of course. Just let me finish up here."

Before anymore could be said on the topic, Erza returned to her work; though much more professionally than before. Seeing that there probably won't be anymore trouble, Wendy returned her attention to her own work. Much to Natsu's dismay.

Thankfully the wound hadn't gotten infected but the half-Sky Dragon wanted to make absolute sure that the wound wouldn't get infected since this was the second time that it had been reopened in the course of a single day. Natsu didn't even know that the wound had reopened until they returned to Roba and was unsure of when it had.

Though part of him had expected the wound to reopen at some point during the fight.

In the chaos of the battle, for the most part he didn't feel the pain the wounds inflicted. At least not until the adrenaline wore off.

When they returned to Roba, Wendy had jumped straight to work getting everyone treated and she wasn't pleased when she discovered that he had reopened his wound and tried to rush him off to the infirmary. Natsu was resilient because with his abilities, he'd heal up just fine in no time. But when Erza showed up, that's what sealed the deal.

More than anything, Natsu wanted to protest that he was completely okay and didn't need immediate medical care because he knew in his gut that a certain blonde friend needed his company more. But for fear of facing an angry Titania, Natsu kept his mouth shut and hoped that Wendy would be done soon. Not only so he could leave, but so he could get away from that dam disinfectant!

But that still didn't stop him from being worried about Lucy.

She was in a fragile emotional condition, even he could see that. Aquarius means a lot to her and Lucy needs his support no matter how much she pretended that she doesn't. What he feared most was that she would build a wall to keep her emotions in. The loss of someone close can do that to anyone. Natsu knew that all too well.

But thankfully, the check up didn't last much longer.

"There!" Wendy said cheerfully as she finished wrapping the final bandage, "All done, Natsu-san! You can go now."

The pinkette's expression lightened and he quickly stood up from the stool he had been sitting on, almost knocking it over. Natsu's first goal was to find Lucy, which shouldn't be hard because he has long since memorized her scent. However, that plan was quickly derailed when he exited the infirmary. As soon as the door opened, three things hit his senses.

An unfamiliar scent, the scent of anger, and the deafening silence.

Natsu immediately realized he probably wasn't going to be getting to Lucy as soon as he would like.

The members of Sabertooth were dead silent, all of them crowded around the doorway. Natsu was about to ask what was going on when a voice boomed from the entrance.

"WHAT IS THIS!? YOU DISGRACEFUL WELPS!" A male voice shouted angrily.

Natsu's brows furrowed at the voice. He didn't sound nice at all, and it didn't look like the Sabertooth mages were too happy to see this stranger either. Forcibly, the crowd parted and a large man with a deep set scowl and the Sabertooth guild emblem stamped on his forehead pushed his way through. The man's narrow eyes skipped past Natsu, apparently not seeing him, or just not caring enough to pay him any attention; and settled on the people who had situated themselves at the bar. At the moment, the occupants of the bar consisted only of Gray, Juvia, Minerva, Sting, Rogue, Yukino, Lector and Frosh. The Sabertooth members looked uneasy as the man's gaze swept over them.

Natsu's own scowl deepened as Minerva shifted with uncharacteristic anxiety as if she was severely uncomfortable all of a sudden in the man's presence. The man's gaze fell squarely on the half-god and narrowed.

"You…" he growled, "What are _you_ doing here, you abomination?"

Minerva flinched under the man's words and Natsu felt his blood boil in rage. The word 'abomination' was a serious slap in the face for anyone of half blooded nature, but what bothered Natsu was Minerva seemed almost used to it, the word only rising a simple flinch from her.

But before Natsu could unload a can of kick butt on that loser, Sting spoke up.

"Is that any way to talk to your own daughter, Jiemma?" The half-White Dragon demanded, clear anger in his voice.

The words Sting spoke shocked Natsu to the core. This horrible man calling Minerva an 'abomination' was her father? That enraged the half-Fire Dragon even more than he already was.

However, he was once again ignored as Jiemma's eyes focused in on Sting, though he looked just as angry as he did before. Tension hung between the two for what felt like hours. And then the man suddenly rose a hand and a surge of magic threw the half-White Dragon out of his seat.

"HALF BREED SCUM LIKE YOU DO NOT BELONG IN A GUILD AS GREAT AS SABERTOOTH!" Jiemma screamed, "I HEARD HOW YOU AND YOUR PITIFUL EXCUSE OF A PARTNER LOST MISERABLY IN A FIGHT AGAINST ANOTHER OF YOUR MISERABLE KIND! AND YOU CALL YOURSELVES THE STRONGEST OF HALF-DRAGONS?!"

Jiemma turned his destructive rage towards Gray and Juvia next. "AND THEN I HEAR THAT WE WERE ATTACKED AND NEEDED _HELP_ FROM _YOUR_ WEAK AND PATHETIC GUILD!" He turned away from Gray and Juvia, facing the rest of Sabertooth, "WE ARE SABERTOOTH! WE DON'T NEED THE USELESS HELP OF OTHERS! ALL OF YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO OUR NAME AND SHALL BE PUNISHED SEVERELY!" he turned back to the Gray and Juvia, "AS FOR YOU FAIRY WIMPS, GET OUT OF MY GUILD, YOU WEAK INSECTS! AND TAKE YOUR HALF BREED AND THAT SLUT WITH YOU!"

The Sabertooth mages muttered angrily, their words merging together into a sound that resembled a swarm of angry wasps. Natsu felt much the same way towards the man who he suspected was the same Jiemma who was the master of Sabertooth. Anger rising, the half-Fire Dragon strode across the room to the bar where Jiemma stood. Natsu was completely prepared to send Jiemma flying. For calling Minerva, Sting, and Rogue abominations, and especially for that slut remark that was no doubt about Lucy. But someone beat him to the punch.

Not the literal one. The figurative one.

"H-Hey, master. C-Calm down! I-It's no big deal really!" Lector stammered, his eyes wide with obvious terror.

Jiemma's full attention zeroed in on the maroon cat, rage rolling off of him in suffocating waves.

"What are you saying, you filthy animal?" He growled.

Lector trembled violently. "I-I-I'm saying that, it's okay to f-fail or need h-help! It's p-part of learning, a-and getting s-stronger! S-Sure, Sting-kun and Rogue-kun lost, b-but that's okay! B-Because they c-can learn f-from their mistakes a-and get st-stronger from there!"

Jiemma stomped his foot angrily. "WE ARE SABERTOOTH! WE DON'T NEED TO GET STRONGER BECAUSE WE ARE ALREADY SUPERIOR! AND FURTHERMORE, WHY IS AN ANIMAL SUCH AS YOURSELF SPORTING THE NOBLE CREST OF SABERTOOTH!?"

Magic began to swell at an alarming rate around Jiemma as his rage grew. He threw his hand out in Lector's direction, magic pulsing across his skin.

"VANISH!" he roared.

Natsu felt his blood run cold as Jiemma threw his spell at the helpless maroon cat. The half-Fire Dragon instinctively picked up his feet to run to Lector's aid, but a sudden flash of blinding white stopped him in his tracks.

The attack stopped short of its target, exploding violently against something else entirely. The explosion generated a huge cloud of smoke, but even the dark cloud couldn't obscure the shine of pure white scales. Or the massive waves of power that emanated from the the epicenter of the cloud as it dissipated.

Sting had been the one who jumped in between Lector and Jiemma. He had taken the full brunt of the attack, but he wasn't fazed in the least. This was probably because Jiemma's power apparently can't penetrate dragon scales. And maybe it was also because Sting had activated **Dragon Force**.

The half-White Dragon simply radiated the presence and power of a real dragon. Natsu couldn't help but wonder if this is what he looked like when he accomplished **Dragon Force**. In other words, an unstoppable force that looked ready to tear into anyone who dared to hurt his loved ones.

Surprise tore through the crowd like a knife, ripping into everyone except for Sting. The half-White Dragon's full, undivided attention was dialed in on Jiemma, his electric blue eyes burning with rage. Although Jiemma didn't seem afraid of Sting, he still bore the same expression of complete and utter surprise that everyone else did.

"Don't. You. Dare. Attack. Lector." Sting growled, anger dripping from his words, "Get the hell out of this guild Jiemma."

The surprised evaporated from Jiemma's face, being replaced by anger.

"YOU DARE TELL ME TO LEAVE MY OWN GUILD! FILTHY HALF BREED!" Jiemma roared.

However, this only served to add fuel to the fire. Jiemma's words whipped the members of Sabertooth into a furious frenzy, everyone of them shouting angrily at the top of their lungs until their voices merged into a crushing wall of enraged noise that no distinguishable words could be made out of.

But their message was crystal clear. They didn't want Jiemma to be their master anymore and they weren't going to let him trash talk their half-blooded members.

Once again, this sudden explosion of outrage only served to deepen Jiemma's anger. Natsu was beginning to suspect that anything could make Jiemma angry as the Saber master's face had contorted into what Natsu believed would be a permanent expression of rage.

"You dare…." he growled.

"Leave, Jiemma." The half-White Dragon repeated, his tone firm.

A roar of agreement rose from the crowd, but only a growl of annoyance came from Jiemma. Finally, it seemed that Jiemma's anger completely overcame him and he threw another magic attack at Sting. Lector shouted in concern from behind the half-White Dragon, but his worry wasn't necessary as Sting simply pulled his fist back, gathered his own magic around his knuckles and punched straight through the attack.

Jiemma's attack was completely shattered by Sting's and the half-White Dragon's magic shot off his fist like a bullet and hit Jiemma square in the chest. The Saber master flew straight into the far wall; which was a good twenty feet away, with such force that there was now a six inch deep Jiemma-shaped indent in the wall.

The Saber master fell limply out of the crater and fell to the floor. Sting approached Jiemma, who pulled himself up to his elbows.

"For someone who's so obsessed with power, you sure are weak, Jiemma." Sting stated, bitterly, "'Sabers never lose'. Those were your words I believe."

Rogue stepped in to support his partner, red-eyes almost glowing with a silent rage as they locked onto the prone man.

"If you can't live up to your own rule, then you shouldn't be master. You excommunicated Minerva because she lost a fight against another mage, so what does it say about you if you lost against a filthy half-breed?" the half-Shadow Dragon stated coldly.

The rest of the guild cheered in agreement, some of them even throwing things at him. Jiemma stood up, using his arms to shield his face from the onslaught. Eventually the volley only seemed to get worse until Jiemma finally snapped.

"ENOUGH!" he roared.

A wave of magic rolled off the man and into the crowd. When the wave approached Natsu however, he acted fast and dodged it, as did Sting, Rogue, Minerva, and the other Fairy Tail members. The others weren't as fast and were knocked off their feet.

"You beat on your own members? That's just sick." Gray said in a disapproving tone.

"A guild master should treat his members with the respect and love he would give to his own child." Juvia agreed, sounding equally as disgusted by Jiemma's actions as Gray.

Natsu growled, putting in his two-cents. "And not just his metaphorical children, his _actual_ children too."

"You treated Minerva like she was an abomination and you treat everyone else like they're beneath you. You are unfit to be master of Sabertooth!" Sting barked.

Jiemma snarled menacingly at the half-White Dragon. But before he could say or do anything, a sudden burst of magic struck the man hard and sent him crashing through the wall.

"Was that really necessary Minerva?" Lector sweat-dropped, "We just fixed that wall!"

"Pardon me," the half-god remarked calmly, not taking her eyes off Jiemma, "I got ahead of myself."

Natsu's onyx eyes followed Minerva as she practically glided towards her father with a deadly air of purpose. Jiemma grunted with effort as he pulled himself from under the rubble. Minerva stopped just a few feet from him, staring down at the man.

The half-Fire Dragon felt somewhat uneasy watching from the perimeter with Sting and Rogue. He wanted to do something, but he wasn't sure what. Rogue apparently sensed his uneasiness and turned towards him.

"Don't worry, Natsu. We can handle Jiemma. This isn't your fight." the half-Shadow Dragon assured.

Sting nodded. "Yeah, besides. If you're worried about Minerva, don't be. She's tough as nails and besides. She's got us backing her up."

Natsu still felt uneasy about not taking action against his friends' enemies like usual. But he respected them enough to know they can handle this one on their own. Though reluctantly, Natsu relaxed his guard.

After what felt like forever, Minerva finally spoke to Jiemma.

The half-god drew a shaky breath and spoke in a low voice. "Father...I no longer fear of you."

Jiemma's eyes widened in surprise as Minerva continued.  
"You drilled into me that because I was half blooded, that I wasn't supposed to exist." she said dryly, "I spent my life trying to please you. Trying to live up to your expectations and trying to earn your affection. I was always afraid I was never good enough for you. However…" Minerva paused, "I will no longer allow you to rule my life."

"M-Minerva-" Jiemma growled threateningly.

"NO!" the half-god shouted, cutting her father off with a sharp sweep of her arm, "Leave. We have made it quite clear that we don't want you as our guild master, or even in our guild anymore."

Jiemma was shocked to silence, his jaw actually hanging slack. Silence gripped the guild for only a few moments before the guild erupted into chaotic shouts once again as the volley of random objects resumed pelting Jiemma with a vengeance.

Eventually, the onslaught grew so vicious, that Jiemma was forced to retreat a fair distance from the hole he had came through to escape the volley. But before he left, he turned back to the members.

Unspeakable rage burned in his eyes. "I WON'T FORGET THIS YOU WELPS! YOU WILL ALL- _ACK!_ "

The Sabertooth master was cut off by a ping-pong ball sized stone pelted him smack in the center of his forehead where his guild emblem was stamped, courtesy of Minerva.

"Begone." the half-god spat bitterly, "I never wish to see your face again."

The man opened his mouth to speak again, only to get peppered by guild members throwing debris that had fallen from the hole in the wall. Natsu's eyes followed Jiemma as he retreated into the swarming crowd that filled the streets where he disappeared.

The guild erupted into victorious cheers and it felt like a heavy cloud that had previously clung to the guild had finally been lifted. In front of Natsu, Minerva wore a relieved smile as she stared at the spot where Jiemma had disappeared.

The half-Fire Dragon couldn't help but smile as the half-god looked like she had just been relieved of a heavy burden. With the interference gone, Natsu turned away and left the members of Sabertooth to celebrate their new freedom to check on Lucy. The half-Fire Dragon leapt up the stairs, skipping two or three steps at a time until he reached the door.

Without bothering to knock, Natsu flung the door open. The oaken door banged noisily against the wall as he entered the dark room.

"Luuuuccccyyy!" he called, his voice echoing hollowly in the still, empty room, "You in the shower or somethin'?"

Natsu strolled around the room, his onyx eyes searching for the owner of a head of blonde hair that he had grown so fond of over the past few weeks. The pinkette strode over to the bathroom door and turned the knob. The door swung open easily, but Natsu wasn't greeted by a blast of humid steam, the smell of strawberry soap, and a startled shout of rage from the bathtub. And maybe a few odd objects being thrown at his head.

Instead, he was met by a pristine, untouched bathroom and judging from the smell, it hadn't been used by Lucy, or anyone, at any recent point in time.

Now, Natsu was getting concerned. This is where Lucy was last, but she wasn't here and to make matters worse, her scent was going stale.

An overwhelming feeling of panic ballooned in Natsu's throat as it quickly dawned on him that Lucy was no longer in the room. The half-Fire Dragon's gaze drifted to the desk that he had left Lucy at the last time he saw her. Something on the desk caught his eye. There was a single piece of paper lying on the desktop. This immediately struck Natsu as unusual because he had seen Lucy's desk at her and Levy's apartment. It was immaculate and all the papers and pens were in their proper place, not left out in the open where someone can freely read them.

Natsu walked to the desk and picked up the piece of paper. It looked like a letter and was written in Lucy's neat, swirly handwriting. The half-Fire Dragon felt his blood run cold as he read it.

In summary, it said that she was going home to finish things with her father before anyone got hurt.

Natsu clutched the letter tightly in his hand and without waiting another second, sprinted out of the room and leapt down the stairs. As soon as his feet touched the ground, the pinkette made a hard right around the corner towards the door and almost immediately crashed into someone, the sudden impact knocked the pinkette and whoever he crashed into falling flat on their behinds.

"Hey! Whatcha in such a hurry for, flame barf!" Gray exclaimed, angrily.

Juvia, who was standing behind Gray, literally began to steep with outrage. "Apologize to Gray-sama this instance!"

The ice maker mage didn't look too happy about being knocked over by Natsu and Juvia, who had faithfully been tailing him at a fairly respectful distance wasn't happy with him either. However, at the moment Natsu could care less about whether either of them were happy with his actions or not. Without a word, the half-Fire Dragon was up again and making a break for the door. He had only just passed the stairs leading up to the infirmary when an armored hand clasped his shoulder, pulling him to a halt.

"Natsu, where are you going?" Erza asked from behind him.

"Is there something wrong Natsu-san?" Wendy questioned, genuine concern in the half-Sky Dragon's voice.

"Yeah, why were you going so fast?" Happy inquired.

The pinkette turned to face his friends, his face involuntarily contorting into an expression of distress and horror as he uttered the two words he wished he never would have to let pass his lips.

"Lucy's gone."

The group let out a collective gasp of surprise and horror.

"WHAT!?" they all exclaimed.

"Was she kidnapped again!?" Happy shouted, concerned.

Natsu shook his head and held out the crumpled letter. "S-She went home."

Erza took the letter out of his hand and began to read it while everyone continued to speculate.

"W-What!? I thought she _didn't_ want to go home!" Gray said, confused.

"She didn't!" Natsu exclaimed, "She went back to finish things with her dad!"

Erza nodded, pocketing the letter. "Natsu's right. According to this letter, Lucy went home to finish things with her father in Konzern before anyone got hurt."

"Didn't Lucy's father hire Blood Eagle to bring her home?" Juvia inquired.

Natsu growled as the memories resurfaced. "Twice."

"What happened twice?" Sting asked from behind Gray.

The commotion that had been brought on by Natsu's news that Lucy had disappeared to return home had apparently attracted the attention of the Twin Dragons and their feline companion's. Really that wasn't a surprise. Even with the loud sounds of celebration that were swarming around the guild, the noise coming from the group were easy to pick up with the sensitive ears of a half-dragon.

"Lucy's dad hired a dark guild to try to forcibly bring her home twice!" Natsu growled, unable to disguise his anger.

Sting's jaw dropped and Rogue's eyes widened ever-so-slightly at the half-Fire Dragon's words.

"That's insane!" Sting exclaimed, "And I thought Jiemma was a crappy father!"

"Why would she go back if her father would go to such measures to bring her home?" Lector questioned.

"She didn't want anyone to get hurt." Erza explained, "Her father already made two attempts to bring her home by force, so what would stop him from trying a third time? No one has gotten hurt in his attempts so far, but…"

"Someone could get hurt in the next attempt." Rogue finished, nodding understandingly, "That doesn't seem like something Lucy could stand."

Frosh also nodded, mirroring the half-Shadow Dragon. "Fro thinks so too!" the cat said just a little too cheerfully.

"Still, Lucy's father doesn't seem like a man we can trust with our nakama. We must find her immediately." the Titania ordered, clenching her fist in determination.

Sting slammed his fist into his open palm, a look of determination on his face. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Um, are you sure you two should go?" Gray asked, crossing his arms over his now bare chest.

Juvia tapped the ice mage on the shoulder. "Gray-sama, your shirt."

Just like that, Gray had disappeared to search for his missing clothing article. And also left the Twin Dragons a little confused. Or at least Sting.

"Huh? Why?"

"You _do_ have to elect a new guild master, you know." Happy pointed out.

Lector nudged the half-White Dragon's leg and Sting promptly deflated. Rogue patted the blonde half-dragon's back sympathetically and then looked back up at the group.

"Good luck and thank you for all of your help." he said.

A curt nod was the final response from the half-Shadow Dragon as he redirected his partner deeper into the guild hall. After that Natsu couldn't hold himself back any more and he started to storm towards the door. He didn't even need to turn around to know that his friends were following him. In all honesty, he didn't care. All he cared about was getting to Lucy before he even had a chance to lose her forever.

Even if he had to ride a train to do it.

…

Lucy's POV:

…

The Celestial Mage had just settled in for the long train ride dead bound for Konzern. Nervous didn't even cover what she was feeling. It had been a year since she had been home and she wasn't exactly eager to see her father again.

Especially not after he all he's done. Not just recently, but what he did in the past as well.

And on top of that, the fact that she left her friends behind in Roba with no other word to where she was going or what she was doing than a letter was really eating at her too. Lucy knew she should have told someone about it. She should have at least told Natsu what she was going to do.

The Celestial mage knew that the half-Fire Dragon would have come whether she wanted him to or not, but it would have been nice if she had the company he would have provided. But there that voice of reason that silenced that desire for company. It wouldn't be smart to let Natsu come, because knowing him he'd go off on her father for everything he did.

And...this was something she needed to do alone.

Or at least that's what she wanted to believe.

…

 **A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long. It's been crazy for me lately unfortunately and I have other stories I have to update as well, but I'll try to get back on my regular schedule.**

 **See y'ah all next chapter :)**


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: Hello everyone! I have returned from the dead to bring you this chapter!**

 **Random thing, but I was just thinking about this recently and I realized that this story has almost been going on for a year. A** _ **year**_ **. I've never committed to a story this long before and been satisfied with it. Or even shared it with anyone besides really close friends.**

 **Right now, the story has over 41,000 views, 192 reviews, 194 favorites, and 282 followers. This story even is part of a community (I don't know what that is exactly because I'm still a noob to FFN, but I think it's a good thing…?)!**

 **I've said this a thousand times before, but thank you all so much for giving this story your attention. This literally wouldn't have been possible without all of your support and I want you all to know how much it means to me :)**

 **Reviews:**

 **Kaggy-Higgy88** **: That's my style after all. I've got to keep you all on your toes some how ;)**

 **gracee. evans13** **: Good question. No. I don't know how many chapters there are going to be when this story ends. I've still got a long way to go before I reach the end of my plans (and I'm not even done scheming yet ^-^), so it might be a while before the story finally wraps up. I have a sneaking suspicion that at the current rate I'm progressing through the story that I might reach 100 chapters...so there's still a** _ **long**_ **way to go.**

 **SunflowerChrysalis** **: Wha!? I didn't mean for it to be anguish ;-; But who says Lucy hasn't figured it out? *wiggles eyebrows* But on another note, hope you brought your floaty, because I will drown everyone in a tidal wave of fluff after this chapter :)**

 **Alaina Kuski** **: Indeed. Why do I keep doing this to them!? DX Oh wait. I know. It's because I'm evil.**

 **Sakuramy** **: Not planning to any time soon :3**

 **FlameDragonHime** **: Here's an update! But for future reference, please don't demand an update. Unless a story is marked "complete" or "on hiatus" there'll be an update soon. Keep that in mind please.**

 **NaluhasNashi** **: I'm glad you like it :)**

 **Before I start this chapter, I want to give you all a heads up. There most likely won't be any updates this June (especially late June). In fact, this may be the last chapter for a little while (at least until mid-July). I have some massive things going on in my everyday life right now that desperately need my attention and my writing time will be cut even more than usual. Sorry about this, but that's just how the cookie crumbled. I'm not giving up on this story, so don't panic when there aren't any updates next month. The story will continue, I just have a lot on my plate.**

 **Thank you for the consideration.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Standing on the cobblestone walkway before the Heartfillia estate, made Lucy's heart fill with dread. She never thought she'd ever return to this place. This eerily quiet mansion that stood a few miles out from the small town that surrounded it. A place that used to hold so many joyful memories, but now held just as many painful ones. If anyone had ever told Lucy that she would have returned here of her own will, she would have never believed them.

She never wanted to come back to this place.

And yet, she did.

Shakily, Lucy adjusted her bag's strap on her shoulder and took a step up the walk. As she went, Lucy couldn't help but notice the glistening blue and gold flowers planted in the flower beds on either side of the walk. A fond smile spread on the Celestial Mage's face as she recognized the flowers.

They were called "Chylluas", a gorgeous six petaled flower with a strong cool, sweet smell from a place without a name. When Layla Heartfillia had called this manor home, these were her favorite flowers. She told Lucy once upon a time that the Chylluas came from her hometown, but she wouldn't name it.

Gently, Lucy bent over, pulled a few of the precious flowers out of the dirt before wrapping them in a cloth and gently placing it in her bag for safe keeping. With the Chylluas safely in her bag, Lucy continued down the cobblestone path until she had reached the base of the marble stairs when the large entrance doors flung wide open and she was tackle hugged by just about every staff member on the grounds as they ran out of the manor to greet her.

Every one of the staff was weeping tears of joy as they swarmed her, all of them commenting on how much she's grown and how much she looks like her mother. There was a bit of scolding for leaving without a word for a year, but Lucy could tell that everyone was genuinely glad to see her and Lucy was glad to see them too. They were like her family after all.

However, the happy moment was interrupted by the sharp clearing of a throat from behind her. Lucy turned away from the joyful staff to focus her attention on the man in the neatly pressed black suit and necktie standing at the base of the polished marble steps. The man stood with a stiff, practiced authority; even though he was barely half of Lucy's height, as his stone cold brown eyes locked onto her.

"Lucy-sama, Mr. Heartfillia would like to speak with you in the study." he said curtly.

An annoyed sigh escaped Lucy's lips.

 _Of course_. she thought bitterly, _His wayward daughter finally returns home, and he sends a footman to summon me. He hasn't changed either._

Still, the Celestial Mage offered a curt nod to the footman and he turned his attention towards the other house staff, who still crowded around Lucy.

"Mr. Heartfillia also says to get back to work." the footman ordered.

Not wanting to get into trouble, the household staff briskly hurried back to their stations, all of them whispering a brief "welcome back" to Lucy as they passed.

Suddenly, the footman was grabbing her wrist and pulling her towards the house.

"Now, now Lucy-sama. You can't be meeting your father in those commoner's rags!" he said, "Come with me and we will get you changed into something more fitting of your status."

Scowling, Lucy dug her heels into the ground, bringing herself to a halt.

"No." she stated firmly, "These are fine."

"But-"

"These are fine." the Celestial Mage repeated, interrupting him.

Finally he seemed to get the picture that she wasn't going to budge on her statement and released her wrist. He stepped back and straightened his tie with a frustrated expression on his face.

"Fine." the man huffed, "I'm sure you remember where the study is."

With that, he ascended the steps and disappeared back into the manor. Lucy simply stared after him, momentarily unsure of whether or not she wanted to see her father. Of course, whether or not she wanted to see him, she had to finish this before something bad happened.

Gathering her courage, Lucy planted her foot on the first marble step then the next. Soon enough, she was walking through the large double doors. Her gaze swept across the familiar entrance hall. It hadn't changed either. It was beginning to feel like nothing in this place ever changed.

Instinctively, Lucy let her feet carry her towards her father's study. A path that had been permanently ingrained in her mind from all the years of running back and forth to the room that her father always hid away in.

Before she knew it, the blonde found herself standing in front of the eerily familiar large double doors. For a moment, Lucy felt like she was a little girl again. A lonely little girl who craved her father's love and attention, but she never received it.

It was always "I'm too busy Lucy", "Go and study Lucy", and "You're bothering me Lucy". Her own father became more like a stranger than family. He always strived to keep her at arm's length or farther if at all possible. Lucy had put up with it for most of her life and last year was when she reached her breaking point. Lucy couldn't take that anymore. She wanted out, so she got out.

Though, Lucy had sworn to herself that she would never come back home, and yet here she was again. Standing in front of the same doors she visited day, after day, after day as a child. The Celestial mage never thought that she would be standing there ever again. Funny how that works.

Before she could lose her courage, Lucy turned the doorknob and opened the door. Like everything else in this house, Jude Heartfillia's office didn't change either. The room still had that cold and unwelcoming atmosphere that stuck to it like cobweb.

As usual, her father was sitting at his desk, almost obscured by the piles of papers and stacks of books that surrounded him, pen in hand scribbling away on the document in front of him. Though, instead of ignoring her like he did when Lucy was little, when she walked through the door, he looked up at her.

Vague surprise crossed his face before settling into a disapproving scowl. A scowl Lucy was more than familiar with.

"Lucy." he said, his voice cold, "Why are you dressed in such an...interesting way?"

"Because this is what I like to wear father. Of course, I wouldn't expect you to care about that." Lucy responded, her own tone equally as icy as her father's.

He grunted then looked back down at his work. "Still, I am glad that you returned to your senses. My contacts in Blood Eagle were quite a disappointment, they shouldn't be expecting payment if they can't handle such a simple task."

The Celestial Mage's eyes narrowed. "Are you even aware that Blood Eagle is a dark guild, father?"

"I am well aware of their...questionable operations, but they had the potential to serve my needs and that's all that matters."

Lucy scoffed. "Yeah, because all that matters is that the job gets done. Nothing else, right?"

"So you finally understand that Lucy? Good. Now I won't have to reteach it to you." he said setting his pen down.

Jude pushed back his chair, stood up and walked around the desk to face Lucy. His posture was stiff and formal and his gaze cold and hard.

"But either way, I'm relieved you have come to your senses and returned home. The reason why I wanted you home was because I have decided who you are to marry." he explained in a business-like tone, "You are to marry Prince Sawlu of the Julenelle. I'm sure you remember him Lucy."

The blonde cringed at the memory. Sawlu had always creeped Lucy out with how he seemed to bare an affection for her that bordered obsessive. Whenever Lucy heard he was coming to the manor, she would avoid him like the plague.

"I do..."

"Your union allow the Heartfillia Railroads to expand into the south, which shall be beneficial to our family. In addition, you are expected to take over as head of the Heartfillia Corporation when I retire and bear an heir to inherit the family business." he turned away from Lucy to face the windows, "That will be all, you may return to your room. And Lucy, burn those commoner's rags. I will not have my daughter soil the family name by dressing in such a disgusting manner."

Anger bubbled within Lucy's chest as she took a breath and spoke. "Father, don't misunderstand me." she said bitterly, "The reason I came back was to make myself clear! It was a mistake to leave without a word. That's no different than running away. However, I'm going to walk my own path! You have no right to decide who I marry or what my future will be!"

For the first time since Lucy arrived, her father's face shifted from his stoic expression to that of surprise and slight enragement.

"W-What!?" he sputtered, shocked that Lucy was talking back to him.

The Celestial Mage, however, wasn't going to back down. "You heard me! I'm going to choose my future for myself!" Lucy shouted, "I want to do what makes me happy! And that's going on adventures with my friends! Not frilly dresses or nice houses and I believe that mother would agree with me!"

Jude gritted his teeth, anger burning in his eyes. "Lucy... don't talk about something you cannot even _begin_ to understand!"

She scowled. "What!? Do you think I don't understand my own mother!"

"OF COURSE NOT!" he yelled.

"AND WHY'S THAT!?" Lucy shouted back.

"BECAUSE LAYLA WAS NEVER HUMAN TO BEGIN WITH!"

Jude's voice echoed hollowly around the room for what felt like ages. Lucy suddenly found herself unable to speak. It didn't make sense to her at all. How could her mother not be human? From the memories Lucy had of her mother, she looked human. Completely human. If she wasn't human, what was she then?

As these thoughts ran through Lucy's head, her father tried to calm down. But he still seemed unusually distraught.

Finally, Lucy found her voice.

"W-What...do you mean?" Lucy questioned.

Jude sighed loudly and buried his face in his hands. "Lucy...your mother was not human. She was a Celestial Goddess. A sister of the Celestial Spirit King."

Lucy's eyes widened. "The Celestial Spirit King?"

Jude nodded, lifting his head out of his palms. "Yes. Layla loved the earth and its inhabitants. She would frequently leave the Celestial Spirit World to explore and on her travels she even discovered three of the Golden Zodiac Keys. In the years before we met, she was an avid adventurer but after a few years she chose to take a...tamer approach to human life."

"She...joined 'Love & Lucky", right? That's the merchant guild you two met in…" Lucy remembered.

Jude nodded grimly. "At the time, I didn't know what Layla was, and of course when she told me, I didn't care. And...we fell in love. A few years later, we were married and had a baby on the way. You, Lucy. We both quit the guild and started up the current business not too long before you were born. However, there was a complication." he said, his voice uncharacteristically breaking, "When you were born, Layla gave you too much of her Celestial Force, the energy that allows her to transcend the planes of existence without being summoned."

"How?" the blonde questioned, "That doesn't sound like something she would be able to control."

Jude shook his head. "I don't know how she managed that either. Much about her true nature is still a mystery to me, even after all these years. But she was only left with enough energy to sustain herself on this earth for ten years rather than ten thousand. When she ran out of Celestial Force, Layla was forced back into the Celestial Spirit World."

Jude paused and took another shaky breath. "Now...she can never return. At least...not in our lifetime. Celestial Force takes so long to replenish, that you and I will be long gone before she can ever return!"

This news made no sense to Lucy. The facts that she was hearing now were clashing with the memories from her childhood. She was told that her mother had passed away when she was ten, but come to think of it...she never saw her mother's body. Originally, she thought it was because the staff wanted to spare her the emotional scarring of seeing her mother's lifeless corpse, but maybe the true reason was that there was no body to begin with.

"So now you know the truth Lucy." Jude said, his voice steadying, "Now you know how you were responsible for your mother's death."

The shock in Lucy's heart immediately disappeared as her father's words tore into her like knives. "So you _did_ blame me. You blamed me for mother's departure all these years."

Jude whipped his head back in Lucy's direction. "Well who else could I blame!" he barked, his composer once again evaporating, "If it wasn't for you, than Layla would still be here by my side! She wouldn't have been forced back into a world where I couldn't reach her! This would never have happened if you were never born!"

"Did it ever occur to you that I miss her too!?" Lucy yelled back.

Jude went silent.

"Did...did it ever occur to you that I loved mom too?" the blonde said a little quieter.

Lucy drew a deep breath before looking her father dead in the eye.

"Listen, dad." Lucy ordered, her tone serious, "I know you love mom, but you have to let go of the past. Or it will drag you down like a lead weight. The only reason I came back was to clear the air with you and give you a warning. If you try to contact me ever again, there will be hell to pay. If you had just tried to talk to me through conventional means...maybe we could have talked it out peacefully. But you've gone too far and I'm not going to wait for one of your attempts to drag me home to hurt my friends."

"L-Lucy-"

However, the Celestial mage...half-Celestial cut him off. "Goodbye father."

Not waiting for a response, Lucy turned around and walked out the office door. Once the door closed behind her, Lucy speed walked out of the manor. This was the last place Lucy wanted to be at the moment. Besides she should get back to Natsu and the others as fast as she can because knowing them, they're blowing things majorily out of proportion.

This assumption proved to be correct for as soon as Lucy reached the bottom of the outside stairs, she was slammed into by her Fairy Tail friends and Natsu.

The force of the sudden impact almost knocked Lucy off her feet, but the tightness in which her friends were hugging her, she managed to recover her footing.

"G-Guys!? What are you doing here!?" Lucy asked, stunned.

"We're here to save you from your crazy old man!" Natsu exclaimed.

The half-Celestial blinked, comprehending what the pinkette had just said. Then she started to laugh.

"You guys!" she laughed.

The next few minutes consisted of walking and Lucy explaining what she was doing here. Though she left out what she had just learned about her mother. Lucy wasn't ready to tell anyone that just yet. Besides, Natsu was too busy scolding her for running off like she did without telling him. Gray, Erza, Juvia, Wendy, Happy, and Carla also took turns scolding her as well, but mostly Natsu was the one giving her an earful.

"I can't believe you did that Lucy! Tell us when you're gonna go on an adventure, don't be an action hog!" the half-Fire Dragon protested.

"Sorry about that." Lucy said sheepishly, "I wasn't thinking straight."

"Obviously!" Natsu exclaimed, "Geez Lucy! And you tell _me_ not to do reckless junk!"

A small bolt of offense shot through Lucy at her friend's words, but that was quickly forgotten in the wake of Erza hitting the half-Fire Dragon on the head with a hard hammerfist.

"Natsu! Don't be rude." the Titania scolded, then she turned to Lucy, "What Natsu is trying to say, is we were worried when you disappeared. You are our nakama Lucy; even if you aren't actually part of Fairy Tail, and we all care about you. Still, I'm relieved that you are unharmed."

"Next time you need to take care of something, give us a heads up first." Gray said.

Wendy nodded in agreement. "Yeah Lucy-chan. Natsu-san and Happy-san were crying the whole way here."

"WE WERE NOT!" the two protested loudly.

Gray scoffed and rolled his eyes. The half-Celestial was about to make a comment at Natsu and Happy's expense when someone shouted "Wait!" from behind them. Lucy stopped and turned around to see Ms. Spetto hobbling up the path as fast as her legs and age would allow. She was clutching something in her hand, but from the distance, Lucy couldn't see it.

When Ms. Spetto reached the group, she took a moment to catch her breath before she spoke.

"L-Lucy...I think you...should have this…"

Ms. Spetto held out a golden key to Lucy, a key that radiated with Celestial magic.

"A-A Zodiac Key!?" Lucy gasped.

Ms. Spetto nodded. "Yes. Capricorn's key. Lady Layla instructed that we give you the keys when the time was right, but you left before I got the chance to give you this one."

The old maid straightened up, placed the Golden Zodiac Key in Lucy's hand, and curled Lucy's fingers around the magically warm metal.

"It rightfully belongs to you. Please take care of yourself Lucy."

Lucy nodded, tearing up a little. "Thank you Ms. Spetto. You take care too."

Ms. Spetto smiled warmly to Lucy and turned to return to the manor. As she did, Lucy and the others began to walk towards the gates, the blonde half-blood staring down at the new key in her hand.

"How many of those do you have now Lucy?" Happy asked.

Lucy hummed, mentally counting the amount of Golden Zodiac Keys she had. "Ten. Wow. I didn't even realize I had gotten so many of them."

"Really? Does that mean you're like a super powerful Celestial Mage now?" Natsu asked with child-like excitement.

The half-Celestial laughed lightly. "I guess so."

"Awesome!" Natsu grinned, "Adventuring is going to be so much easier now!"

Erza smiled. "Now that we know that Lucy is safe, why not head back to Fairy Tail and celebrate? Everyone will be glad to see you two."

The half-Fire Dragon's expression lit up. "Alright! I can't wait to see everyone! And I'm finally gonna burn snow pansy to a crisp!"

"In your dreams Natsu!" Gray shot back.

"Just you watch! I'll win for sure! Especially if Lucy's helpin' me!" Natsu claimed, "We're unstoppable together!"

Lucy scowled lightly. "Natsu! I am not helping you fight Gray!"

"Whhaaa! Lucy! How could you abandon meeee!" Natsu sobbed.

…

 **A/N: Surprise! Lucy was a half-blood this whole time! Well, that probably isn't actually a surprise. I made that pretty obvious and some of you even guessed that Layla was a Celestial Maiden or something of the sort and you were right! Gold stars all around *sticks a gold star sticker on your foreheads*! However, I've still got plenty of surprises in store, though so stay tuned.**

 **Also, there are some things about half-bloods that I want you all to know:**

 **-First, the reason why the wounds Jasper inflicted on Lucy healed up just fine and the creature from the Oracion Seis arc left a scar is because Jasper used a non-magical weapon to inflict harm onto Lucy and the creature was made of magic. Basically, a half-blood is able to heal non-magically inflicted wounds at a supernatural rate (something Natsu hasn't really caught onto yet…) but magically inflicted wounds take more time to heal and are more at risk for scarring.**

 **-Second, all half-bloods have two "full" days. As in a day where one side of their genetics takes over (f.e. The Ember Moon and Natsu's full human transformation). They're usually at opposite sides of the year though, but all half-bloods have a day where they either turn into a full human or into a full whatever-the-other-half-is. And yes, this means that Natsu** _ **can**_ **turn into a dragon (*whispers* so cool).**

 **-Before any of you ask. No, Lucy can't eat Celestial energy the same way Natsu eats fire. Consuming elements is a dragon-exclusive trait, though being half-goddess, Lucy has a few neat tricks of her own up her sleeve (like Stardress and Urano Metria for example)**

 **-There are quite a number of differences between half-gods and half-dragons (I haven't worked it all out to be honest. Lucy being half-god wasn't something I had originally planned…). But I probably won't cover them all in this story.**

 **If you have any questions, shoot me a PM and I'll be glad to answer them (or try to at least).**

 **However, questions relating to future plots and arcs will not be answered because I don't give out that kind of information to one person before everyone else gets it. That just isn't fair to everyone else.**

 **But if you have suggestions for potential plots in the future, I'd be glad to hear it (though there is no promise I'll use it in this story, if not at all).**

 **Get ready for the fluff! It might be a while, but it will come!**

 **See you all next chapter :)**


	39. Chapter 39

**A/N: Sorry this took so long. Like I said before, I've been busy with a bunch of stuff and that didn't leave much time for writing this *face desk*. Thank you for your patience.**

 **As reward, you get a fluff storm. (which you'll probably need in light of *cough*** _ **certain**_ _**events**_ **in the manga. Those of you who have read it already know what I'm talking about.) *hands you an umbrella and runs***

 **Oh, and I'll be adding additional information about half-gods at the end. Thanks to Uchida Akira for asking questions about it.**

 **This will be the last update for a while because I will be busy with other things, but when that's done, I'll jump right back to writing :)**

 ** _Reviews_ :**

 **LeeHimeChan** **: Aww. Thank you~ that's so sweet *blushes***

 **SunflowerChrysalis** **: Well, we're going to find this out in the near future what Natsu thinks of Lucy's half-godness. There's absolutely no way they can continue adventuring together and he** _ **doesn't**_ **find out. I have made plans for this *evil laugh*. But regarding your other point, Layla will make an appearance eventually ;)**

 **Alaina Kuski** **: Thank you :)**

 **Kaggy-Higgs88** **: I love plot twists too :)**

 **Uchida Akira** **: Thank you and I'll try :). Also, thank you for asking the questions regarding half-gods.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Returning from Konzern to the Fairy Tail guild hall in Magnolia felt unbelievably liberating. The guilt of not divulging the new information still gnawed persistently at Lucy's stomach, but it was pushed into the background for the most part as they boarded the train. The train ride to Magnolia was uneventful, full of laughing, stories and Natsu hanging out of the window with a puke green face. The poor half-Fire Dragon was suffering the full effects of his motion sickness and it took a reminder from Carla for them all to remember that Wendy could give Natsu a temporary immunization from his motion sickness through the Sky Dragon Magic that everyone seemed to forget about frequently. Though Wendy did say that she couldn't cast the spell too often or Natsu will build an immunity.

With that taken care of, Natsu withdrew from the window and sat next to her like a somewhat normal person exchanging insults with Gray the rest of the way. It was strangely interesting how creative the two could get with their nicknames, though they were forbidden to curse with Wendy there at the threat of getting turned into a scratching post, courtesy of Carla.

However, the half-Sky Dragon had to leave a few stops ahead of them as she had to return to her own guild. The goodbye was short, but full of tears and Wendy promised to visit or call as often as possible. Natsu was about to break the poor girl's back when he hugged her goodbye and almost sobbed telling the half-Sky Dragon how much he was going to miss her.

When they had to part ways, the train ride from there took a while to regain the juvenile air that it had before.

Two hours later, the sun was beginning to set and they had finally reached Magnolia. In a way, it felt nostalgic to Lucy. It was like coming home in a way, which was odd because Lucy had only been to Magnolia once and it wasn't even for a day. But then again, these people had risked a lot to rescue her from Bora when he had kidnapped her and they barely knew her. Maybe that wasn't so odd after all.

What was a little odd though was Natsu kicking the Fairy Tail guild's doors in shouting: "we're home!". Lucy almost laughed as the half-Fire Dragon had seemingly adopted the mage guild as a home. And the guild seemed to have adopted Natsu as one of their own as well.

The moment the pinkette kicked the doors in, Natsu was practically tackled by half of the guild. On the flip side of that, Lucy was tackled by the other half, much to her surprise. And at the front of the unexpected embrace was Gajeel and Levy. Mostly Levy, but the half-Iron Dragon was fairly close behind.

The half-Celestial wondered what the fuss was all about and why Levy and Gajeel were at Fairy Tail until she remembered that they haven't heard from her in weeks and she had a sneaking suspicion that Levy and Gajeel were the ones who had alerted the mage guild of Lucy's kidnapping along with Natsu.

 _No wonder they're so relieved to see me_. Lucy thought, a smile playing on her lips.

"Lu-chan! You're okay, thank goodness!" Levy exclaimed, her voice breaking with relief as she embraced the blonde.

"Yeah. I-I'm fine Levy-chan." the half-Celestial smiled softly, tears forming in the corners of her eyes as she hugged her friend back.

Suddenly a light, but harsh blow made impact with the top of Lucy's head. Her attention was drawn towards the half-Iron Dragon who was staring down at her with intense...green eyes? Lucy distinctly remembered Gajeel's eyes being red, but he retained his signature toothy smirk regardless.

"Geehee. Let us know ahead'a time when y'er gonna get kidnapped Bunny Girl. Salamander almost had a heart attack." Gajeel smirked.

Lucy sweat dropped slightly. "Uh...sure? Hey, aren't your eyes usually red?"

"It's a half-dragon thing." Gajeel explained as Levy withdrew from her hug, "Today's the Spring Equinox. It's my 'day of humanity', so I'm human for the day. All half-bloods have two special days a year. One day, they're completely human; for the other, they're completely whatever-else they are."

Lucy's brow furrowed slightly. Was she going to have something like that? Or a better question, _has_ she ever had anything like that? Just because she didn't know what she really was before, doesn't mean it didn't happen.

Before the half-Celestial could ponder the matter further, the guild suddenly went silent. Looking up at the second floor balcony, Lucy saw their guild master, Makarov was standing to his full three feet of height on the wooden railing.

"It's good to see you two, Natsu and Lucy. You brats sure know how to get into trouble, don't you?" the short man chuckled.

"Hey there Gramps!" Natsu beamed from somewhere in the massive crowd, "Good to see y'ah!"

The guild master simply grinned back before addressing the rest of the guild. "Now that our nakama is safe once again, let's do what Fairy Tail does best. Let's celebrate!" Makarov exclaimed.

The guild roared in agreement and things got crazier from there when a Card Mage, Lucy later learned was named "Cana", started challenging people to drinking contests. It wasn't even three minutes in and a good chunk of the guild was already wasted. The half-Celestial could only hope that Natsu wouldn't partake in the challenge, but knowing him he'd jump in eventually.

"Come on Lu-chan! Let's celebrate!" Levy exclaimed, pulling Lucy towards the bar.

The blonde couldn't help but laugh and go along with it. Maybe just for tonight she could just have fun.

…

Natsu's POV:

…

The party in the Fairy Tail guild had only just started and it was already getting wild, just the way Natsu liked it. He was the kind of person who thrived off of these environments and Fairy Tail was like a third home to him. And what made it even better was that he got to fight with the Ice Princess and Erza and Lucy couldn't see him picking a fight. Natsu would have fought with Gajeel too, but the half-Iron Dragon was going through his Day of Humanity and currently couldn't fight with him. Natsu didn't press.

But besides that, it was great.

Though overall, Natsu was just glad that Lucy was safe, back with him, and that the whole mess with her dad and Blood Eagle was done and over with. Now it was time to party!

At the moment, the half-Fire Dragon was fighting with Gray. He was winning (A/N: So wasn't), though a few other mages butted into the fight and it grew into a giant mosh pit of craziness . Somewhere along the line, Natsu got thrown from the fight into some innocent bystander. The two of them crumpled to the floor in a less than awkward position.

"Oh dear. Looks like things are really getting out of hand, aren't they?" a female voice asked from underneath him, almost laughing.

Natsu pulled himself up, his fight momentarily forgotten, when he made the mistake of looking at the person he had crashed into. It was like looking at a ghost. For a second, Natsu could have sworn he was looking at the face of Lisanna. Just with longer hair and a dress.

"My name's Mirajane by the way. You must be Natsu, we never got to properly meet the last time you were here." she said cheerfully.

For a second, all the half-Fire Dragon could do was stare at Mirajane and the Fairy Tail mage seemed to pick up on Natsu's sudden change in mood.

"Um..is everything okay?" Mira asked, sounding concerned.

Natsu nodded. "Yeah, just weirded out for a moment. You remind me of an...almost-friend."

Mira rose an eyebrow. "'Almost-friend'? What was their name?"

The half-Fire Dragon hesitated. He wasn't sure if he should tell Mira about Lisanna, but he doubted that she'd let him leave without at least learning her name. Natsu couldn't place his finger on it, but Mira just had that look in her eye. Besides, Mira is a Fairy Tail mage and he could trust her.

"Um...her name was Lisanna." Natsu said, almost muttered.

Mira's eyes widened in surprise. "Y...You." the surprise melted into a sad smile, "So you were the half-dragon that she met all those years ago. Heh. Funny how our paths crossed like this after all these years."

Natsu's brow furrowed in confusion. "Huh? What are you talking about?"

The Fairy Tail mage chuckled lightly, a shallow well of tears in her eyes. "Lisanna was my little sister."

Guilt slammed into the half-Fire Dragon's chest as hard as a punch. He was completely taken off guard by the new information. It was like he was living through the incident all over again. But this time, he was faced with Lisanna's sibling. When the event had actually occurred, Natsu had bailed from town before he met her grieving family. Like Lisanna's death, it ate at him everyday.

"I...I-I'm so sorry." Natsu muttered.

A light, forgiving touch appeared on his back. "Natsu, it's okay. I don't blame you for what happened to Lisanna and neither does Elfman. And I'm sure that Lisanna would be overjoyed that you're not alone anymore."

The pinkette nodded meekly at Mira's words, feeling the guilt ease ever-so-slightly. "Thanks Mirajane."

Mira smiled widely. "You're welcome Natsu. But while you're here, there's something I wanted to talk to you about concerning a certain Celestial Spirit Mage that you're very close with."

The half-Fire Dragon gulped as Mira's expression grew mischievous and remarkably terrifying. He had a feeling that he was in for a bad time (A/N: I'm sorry. I really am. I couldn't think of anything else to write here…I didn't mean to reference Undertale.).

…

Lucy's POV:

…

By now, the celebration was in full swing. Levy was excitedly discussing a book with Lucy over fruit smoothies. Both mages had quickly turned down the offer of alcohol, remembering the last time they had consumed the vile liquid. It was a night they didn't remember, but they sure did regret. Lucy and Levy had both sworn off alcohol for the rest of their lives and no amount of force or pestering from Cana could get them to let even a single drop pass their lips.

That aside, Levy apparently had tried to take her mind off of her overwhelming concern for Lucy and Natsu by reading and somehow had finished half a dozen books in the span of time that Lucy had been missing. Levy had stated that she wished she could have been part of the rescue mission, but Gajeel was certain that Natsu could take care of it fine on his own. She had even attempted to sneak out, but there was no sneaking with a half-dragon around.

The Solid Script mage was excited to talk about the books she read, but Lucy was only half-listening. She couldn't seem to focus on Levy's words at all, but at the same time the half-Celestial couldn't hold onto a coherent thought. It was like there was a cyclone in her brain and it was starting to drive her mad.

Eventually, she couldn't take it anymore and excused herself for a moment. The half-Celestial had invoked the oldest excuse in the book. The bathroom excuse. But as cliche and lame as it was, it did work and Lucy slinked away into the crowd.

She searched around for a minute or two, but thankfully it didn't take long to find who she was looking for. Master Makarov. The old fool had just about drunk himself silly, his cheeks flushed bright red in his drunken state. Mirajane was nowhere to be found behind the bar, which for some reason conjured a strange feeling of pity in the pit of her stomach for whoever she was with.

Anyway, Makarov noticed Lucy approaching and smiled widely.

"Well hello there Lucy!" a drunken hiccup. "What can I do for you?" he said, a little too cheerfully.

Lucy sweat-dropped. She was unsure whether or not the old wizard would even take her question seriously in his...current state. But then again, no sense in not trying.

"I've got an...um...question for you." the blonde stated.

Makarov nodded understandingly, seeming a little more sober. "Alrighty then. Go ahead."

"What...do you know about half-gods?"

The cheerful grin all but melted away from Makarov's face and he coughed awkwardly.

"I'm afraid I can't help you there Lucy."

"Huh? But you know all this stuff about half-dragons...why not half-gods?" Lucy inquired.

Makarov chuckled lightly and set his mug aside. "Gajeel gave me that information and unfortunately, I don't know any half-gods. What has you so interested in this topic, if you don't mind me asking."

Lucy averted eye contact with the old man and shifted her weight awkwardly. "Um...no reason?"

The old wizard chuckled, picked up his mug again and took a deep swig. "You're secret's safe with me, Lucy." he said, half into his mug.

The half-Celestial laughed breathily and simply walked away and rejoined Levy at the bar. The Solid Script Mage grinned as Lucy seated herself back at the bar and continued where she left off. For some reason or another, Lucy could actually focus now.

…

The party's been raging on for a few hours now and Lucy's worst fear has been confirmed. Natsu had joined in on Cana's drinking contest and lost miserably. The battle literally stretched on for an hour and a half, but in the end Cana emerged victorious.

And now Lucy was stuck with a horribly drunk Natsu.

The half-Celestial had assumed that as a half-Fire Dragon, Natsu would be more resilient to becoming drunk because his high body temperature would burn through the alcohol like it was nothing.

But apparently an hour and a half of drinking and about nine dozen barrels of strong rum was too much, even for Natsu's inhuman tolerance. How Cana hadn't dropped dead yet is a mystery. She must have a titanium liver to be able to down that much alcohol and more and still be standing upright.

However, Lucy was in a very awkward and frustrating position with her dear half-blooded friend. The blonde had discovered the hard way that Natsu apparently was an angry-territorial drunk. And he had apparently claimed Lucy as 'his'. Sort of.

At the moment, there was a good ten foot ring around Lucy because anyone who got any closer would get a **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist** in the face. Especially those of the male gender. But that didn't stop Natsu from shouting threats and other nonsense nonstop at the top of his lungs that somehow got swallowed by the background noise of the party.

Lucy had her fingers buried in her ears while Natsu stood on the bar top in front of her shouting at the closest people while his scales flashed violently under his skin, face flushed pink with drunkenness, fists smoldering dangerously and sparks flying from his mouth as he shouted.

Finally, Lucy couldn't take it any longer.

"Hey Natsu, can you take it down a few notches?" she asked, stressing to keep her annoyance out of her voice.

"DON'T *hiccup* TELL ME WHAT TO *hiccup* DO BLONDE WOMAN!" the half-Fire Dragon bellowed, a spray of sparks fizzling out of his mouth.

The half-Celestial sighed in annoyance and stood up from her stool and tried to walk away, but as she probably should have expected; a heavy weight flopped on top of her from above. The somewhat sudden blow knocked Lucy to the ground and unfortunately left her pinned under what felt like an overheated sack of potatoes.

"*hiccup* YOU'RE NOT LEAVIN' *hiccup* ME, LUIGI!" the drunk pinkette declared.

 _Why me?_ Lucy groaned mentally as she lightly banged her forehead against the floor in aggravation, _And he's using that dumb nickname again too. Who knew he was such a terror when he was drunk…_

Lucy tried to worm her way out from under her drunk friend, but even when he was drunk, his strength still trumped her's. Or maybe that was because he was roughly two-hundred pounds of dead weight.

Probably the second one.

But a quick elbow-thrust had Natsu rolling sideways, freeing Lucy from the dead weight. Short laughs burst from the surroundings as the half-Fire Dragon rolled ungracefully onto his back, but Lucy didn't really care about that.

She was running out of patience for Natsu. Lucy was mentally, physically and magically exhausted. Physically from fighting Tartarous, mentally from confronting her father, and magically from forming a new contract with Capricorn just an hour ago. As her energy had been depleted, it has taken a toll on her patience as well. And the noisy-possessive drunk was not helping.

Glancing over at Natsu, he was sitting up and staring vengefully at the stoll in front of him for some reason before his head jerked in Lucy's direction. A small shiver traveled down Lucy's spine.

Why was Natsu looking at her like a wolf stalking his prey?

However, before the half-Fire Dragon could do...whatever he was going to do, a sake bottle collided with the side of his head. And knocked him out cold.

"BRING ME MORE SAKE DROY!" Erza shouted from a table.

"B-But that's Natsu…" the actual Droy said feebly.

Looking over at the scene, Lucy could see that Cana had also proved victorious against the Titania, who was obviously a very angry drunk. The Requip mage was sitting on top of a table with several empty sake bottles scattered next to her. Her face was also flushed a drunken shade of pink.

"Oh no. This can't be good." Lucy muttered half to herself.

Her suspicions were proven correct when Erza Requipped into her Purgatory Armor, roaring at people to shut up and get more beer. Soon enough there was a full-scale brawl going on in the guildhall and Lucy was forced to take refuge behind the bar with a knocked out Natsu.

Though everything seemed to be going completely insane, Lucy couldn't be happier. She was with the people she cared for, living the life she decided for herself.

…

 **A/N: Once again, sorry for the wait and sorry if this chapter was below average. I'll try to update sooner, but I won't be able to do any writing for a while for personal reasons. Sorry, but there'll be another long wait unfortunately.**

 **Now here's some information about half-gods that I want you to know.**

 **~Half-gods are more powerful when in proximity to their orb of power (in Lucy's case, anything celestial), but can be weakened when they are separated from it and would expend more power to use spells.**

 **~Creatures from that half-god's domain will feel reassured by their presence**

 **~Half-gods are more susceptible to over-using their magic**

 **~Half-gods have the bearings the best when they're in their own domains**

 **~Half-gods can flawlessly understand their domain's language and can switch between their human language and their domain's language without realizing it.**

 **~Like half-dragons, half-gods have an insane healing ability. Though healing magically inflicted wounds are a bit more difficult than a regular wound like a knife wound.**

 **~Half-gods have a weakness towards titanium, though this is a little known fact that probably won't be exploited much.**

 **~Half-gods also have a prolonged lifespan that is actually even greater than half-dragons.**

 **Before I go, I have one more little bonus for you all :)**

…

The next morning

…

"Owwwww….what did I do last night!?" Natsu groaned as he gripped his pounding head as the light hit his eyes.

The half-Fire Dragon hid his face in the nearest object to hopefully dull the effects of the hangover, which happened to smell of strawberries, vanilla and faintly of alcohol. It was soft, silky, warm and it helped to block out the cursed light that made his head hurt so much.

Vaguely, he tried to remember what happened to put him in such a state. Slowly, the memories of the previous night's events began to trickle back to him. After his...talk with Mira, he had taken up Cana's challenge the night before…

...and he lost pitifully.

It took him a moment to realize that somehow he had gotten dead drunk, which was unusual for him considering alcohol usually had little effect on him. The pinkette shuddered to think about what he had done while in his drunken state. Fortunately, those memories were mostly absent. Though his throat was a bit sore for some reason. But Natsu had a feeling he didn't want to know the reason why.

A soft, sleepy groan next to him however drew him from his thoughts. Bracing himself for the pain, he cracked his left eye open to a wall of silky golden...hair? Still fogged with hangover and sleep, it took a while for Natsu's brain to identify the owner of the hair.

For some reason or another, Lucy had fallen asleep next to him behind the bar from the looks of it. Her back was turned towards him, which is what allowed him to nuzzle into her hair to begin with. Her clothes were a bit wrinkled from sleeping in them and the Celestial Mage was fast asleep.

So naturally, Natsu had to draw a mustache on her face.

It took a bit of painful searching, but he managed to find a thick tipped black marker. Stifling his laughter, Natsu uncapped the pen and prepared to start doodling all over Lucy's face. Oh man, she was going to flip when she saw this! It was going to hurt, but it will be worth it to get her riled up.

The tip brushed against Lucy's face…

...but nothing came out.

Raising a confused brow, Natsu turned the pen on himself and tried to draw on his arm. Once again, no thick line appeared on his skin. It was a dud pen! What a disappointment. Why did someone still have this anyway if it didn't write?

Disappointed that he wouldn't get the chance to prank his friend, Natsu tossed the pen over his shoulder and settled in against the wall opposite of the bar. Thankfully, he was starting to burn through the hangover, so the light didn't bother him as much as before. But his head still hurt like he was hit with a brick.

From here, he could get a better look at the sleeping blonde mage. Lucy was using her arm as a pillow, which will be anything but comfortable when she woke up. Natsu had plenty of experience with that. Some stray locks of her hair was sticking to her face thanks to a mixture of sweat and probably a bit of drool, but she had a very content, happy smile on her face.

At least she's safe and happy. That's all that really mattered, right?

Well, other than getting his wings, but did Natsu really even care about that anymore? That goal had been put on the back burner with the whole Blood Eagle thing. But if he was going to be completely honest with himself, Natsu was exhausted. He could use a few days to relax and have fun with his friends and he knew Lucy would too after all the crap she's been through recently.

With that in mind, Natsu drifted back to sleep. Completely unaware of a certain bartender watching him and Lucy the whole time with an evil glint in her eyes.

…

 **A/N: Okay. Done now. Have a nice day/afternoon/night everyone and see you next time.**


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N: Lookie who's alive! I'm really sorry this took so long. A few unforeseen things came up, so updates are still going to be spotty. Also, I'm going to be doing some HEAVY editing to the story. Nothing overly plot changing, just some general polishing, spell-checking (why am I so bad at spelling T-T ?)and streamlining. It's something that I've wanted to do for a while, but I haven't gotten around to it until now (mostly because I'm lazy). I've already started on chapters 1-6. So expect some chapters to change.**

 **The thing that primarily took away my time for writing is now over (and it wasn't anything bad if you're wondering that. It was actually really good), so I can write a little more now ^-^**

 **And thank you so much for the consideration some of you gave me while I was absent. That really means a lot to me. Thank you :)**

 **However, I regret to inform you all that my update schedule is going to be pretty crappy. School started for me recently and unfortunately with the way that my schedule is, I don't have much if not any time to devote to fanfiction writing T-T**

 **I can still write on Friday nights and weekends depending on how energetic I feel and what's scheduled for those days, but given how my workload has been I won't be able to dedicate as much time as I would like to this.**

 **Sorry in advance.**

 **Reviews:**

 **Alaina Kuski** **: I'm glad :)**

 **NaluhasNashi** **: Wah! That's so sweet! Thank you! Love you too :)**

 **CanadianOtaku13** **: Thank you so much for the consideration! That's so sweet of you :)**

 **Guest** **: *sigh* Guest, I have said this before, but please** **don't demand updates** **(from me or from any writer for that matter) and NaLu will be canon in this story** _ **eventually**_ **. Please just be patient. It will all come in time.**

 **Uchida Akira** **: Thank you so much :) I'm glad I was able to clarify half-gods for you :)**

 **Ckc14** **: Thank you so much. You're probably the only person who reviewed and actually completely read the Author's Note and understood what I was saying. That really means a lot to me. I mean that from the bottom of my heart. Thank you.**

 **Nekokittygirl** **: For future reference, (1)** **completely** **read an author's note when one is presented because it most likely has very important information regarding update schedules or why the update is taking five centuries and (2)** _ **DO NOT**_ **post a review that is telling the author they "better update soon". That is insensitive and** _ **rude as hell**_ **. I mean it when I say people demanding updates is annoying to me.** _ **Never**_ **do that again.**

 **21hauptman** **: Same as Nekokittygirl. BE PATIENT AND** _ **DO NOT**_ **POST SOMETHING LIKE THAT ON MY STORY AGAIN!**

 **Enjoy everyone :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Lucy woke up drowsily to the quiet rustling of random objects and inaudible curses. She felt a little stiff as she sat up against the bar. More than likely a side-effect of falling asleep on the hardwood floor. After a little stretching to work out some of the soreness in her muscles, Lucy noticed that someone was missing.

Namely, a pink-haired half-Fire Dragon who had been dead drunk and knocked out cold soon after the night before. The half-Celestial had dragged him behind the bar with her to make sure he didn't get hurt in the drunken brawl that ensued soon after he was knocked out by Erza.

Or worse. Wake up and join in himself.

But now he wasn't there anymore.

Standing up and looking over the bar, Lucy observed the damages that had been inflicted on the Fairy Tail guild hall the night before. The entire layout of the building had been completely changed. Tables, chairs, dishes, clothes, strange little creatures, wall decorations, beer bottles and keggers and even people were strown around the guildhall in a messy fashion by which the likes Lucy has never seen before.

And everyone was passed out either from exhaustion or other means and somehow ended up grouping together at some point during the night, leading to strange piles of people clinging to each other in their sleep like a child to their baby blanket.

All except one person, who was searching around the building with some degree of stealth and care.

"Natsu?" Lucy asked, her voice hushed to a low whisper.

The half-Fire Dragon halted his search and looked up at the blond, his expression resembling a deer caught in headlights.

It only took Lucy a moment to realize what her friend was looking for. Strangely, Natsu was somehow missing his scarf, which explained why he was searching through the building so diligently. The scarf _was_ the only thing he had left from his father.

Briefly, Natsu turned back to his search but still muttered to Lucy, "I can't find my scarf!"

It didn't take any convincing from Lucy to join him in his search. However, they looked high and low for the thing, but they still didn't find it.

Though one thing that Lucy _did_ notice while they were searching was that Natsu had a scar over the left side of his neck. It captured Lucy's attention because she'd never seen it before because it was always hidden under his scarf.

"Hey Natsu." Lucy whispered.

The pinkette looked up at her from the pile of beer kegs he was looking through.

Lucy pointed to her neck in correlation to where his scar was. "Where is that scar from?"

Natsu's hand drifted towards the jagged mark on his neck and shrugged at her before returning to his search.

Likewise, Lucy returned to her's, though she still felt a little confused. It was a little odd he didn't know where that scar came from, but it was probably unimportant. On second thought, that wasn't very surprising. Natsu wasn't the kind of person to notice injuries unless they hindered him. He could have inflicted that scar on himself in any number of ways while he was younger.

That aside, Lucy and Natsu kept searching around the guild for a while. People were beginning to wake up and the pair was still looking. Levy was the first to approach Lucy after she woke up.

"Lu-chan? What are you doing?" the Solid Script mage questioned sleepily.

"Natsu lost his scarf, so we're looking for it." the half-Celestial explained, her voice still hushed for the sake of the people who were still asleep.

At that moment, Natsu poked his head from behind the bar where he was searching. "I didn't lose my scarf Luce!" he said in a fairly loud tone.

Lucy and Levy shushed him and pointed at the rest of the people who were still asleep. This rose an eyeroll from the half-Fire Dragon before he ducked back behind the bar.

As he did that, Lucy turned back to Levy. "Could you help us look? That scarf is really important to him."

Levy nodded. "Say no more Lu-chan."

The Solid Script Mage wasted no time joining in on the search. Gajeel woke up a short time later, but when asked to assist in looking for Natsu's scarf, the half-Iron Dragon just scoffed and went back to sleep. Or pretended to, knowing Gajeel. Good news for him was that his eyes were back to their usual blood red, signifying that his day of humanity was now over.

However, it didn't really matter if Gajeel changed his mind and helped or not because Gray and Erza were more than willing. On the downside to that, the five of them practically turned the hall upside down a second time and reaped no results.

By then, most of the guild was up and looking at them with questioning gazes as they looked under tables, empty keggers and other things. People included.

"Ugh! Where the hell is it!?" Natsu grunted, dropping a mage back on the ground after looking under him.

"Maybe if you weren't so careless, you'd actually be able to keep track of your stuff flame-brain." Gray jabbed, letting a table he was holding drop.

Natsu shot the ice mage a glare, but continued searching through the guild muttering under his breath.

"Well Natsu's scarf clearly isn't on this level." Erza said, dropping the pile of chairs that she had pulled up.

"Where else would it be?" Levy asked sounding

"Maybe it somehow got upstairs...?" Lucy suggested weakly.

"Wouldn't be surprised!" Gajeel shouted from across the room.

The half-Fire Dragon finally gave up on searching the first level in favor of scowling in Gajeel's direction, but he didn't say anything. At least nothing Lucy heard.

"So should we look up on the second floor?" Levy asked tentatively, "Or should we have Erza look?"

"Huh? Why would we have just Erza look up there?" Natsu demanded.

"Yeah." Lucy agreed, "Wouldn't it be more efficient if we all went up there?"

Gray shook his head insistently. "Only S-Class wizards can go on the second floor flamebrain and last I checked, you're not S-Class." he explained, taking the chance to poke fun at the pinkette.

"That's not fair!" the half-Fire Dragon protested, "I could totally be S-Class!"

"Yeah right! An actual S-Class wizard like Erza would chew you up and spit you right out!" the Ice mage jarred.

At that moment, Erza stepped in. It only took a sharp glare from the Titania to still their bickering.

"Enough you two! It won't take me long to search the second floor. Wait here until I return or you will be punished!"

To make her point, Erza requipped a rather wicked looking sword and without further conversation, she disappeared up the stairs to the second floor. A series of banging sounds chronicled her quest to hopefully locate Natsu's missing scarf, but after five minutes of consecutive banging, Erza appeared on the balcony shaking her head.

A clear sign for "nope. It's not up here".

Natsu groaned in despair. "Where is it then? It couldn't have just disappeared off the face of the planet!"

"Maybe you incinerated it in your sleep." Gray offered, leaning against the bar.

"Nah." Natsu said, dismissing the possible jab from the Ice mage, "That scarf is flameproof. It wouldn't have lasted this long otherwise, so it _must_ be somewhere."

By that time, Erza had returned to the lower levels. "Then we will have to diligently search the perimeter until we locate it."

"Hey Erza. Not that I'm complaining or anything, but why are you so fired up about this?" Levy asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Erza replied, her eyes shining with an unusual vigor, "This scarf is important to Natsu and as his friends, we must assist him in finding it!"

The Requip mage was almost glowing with enthusiasm. However, Lucy could see that Levy and Gray didn't share Erza's enthusiastic attitude. They tried to hide it behind somewhat eager smiles, but the blonde could tell that it was forced. This definitely wasn't how they expected to spend their morning, but the fact that they were participating anyway really spoke to how much they cared about Natsu.

With few options, Lucy went outside the building, working under the assumption that Natsu's scarf somehow was out there. Much to her dismay, there was no sign of the scale-patterned scarf.

"Ugh. How does stuff like this always happen to me?" Lucy groaned, throwing her head back in frustration.

However, upon doing so, Lucy caught sight of something fluttering on the flagpole beneath the Fairy Tail guild flag. It was longer and thinner than the flag and seemed to be two parts with fringed edging…?

"Wait a minute! Is that…?"

It was a silly question because it was pretty obvious what it was. How Natsu's scarf got on the flagpole on the top of the guildhall was beyond her, but Lucy was just glad to have found it.

She went back inside the guild. "Hey Natsu, guess what!" Lucy shouted.

The half-Fire Dragon's head popped up from the table he was sitting at, his face set in an uncharacteristically dejected expression.

"What?" he mumbled.

"I found your scarf."

Immediately as soon as those words left her mouth, Natsu was shot up like a rocket. The depressed look on his face had instantly been replaced by an excited and starry-eyed expression not too unlike a child on Christmas day.

"Really!? Where is it!?" he asked, unable to keep the excitement and relief out of his voice.

Lucy motioned for him to follow her and walked back out of the guild, the pinkette close on her heels. When they were outside, she pointed upwards to where the scarf was stuck on the flagpole.

Natsu's relieved expression faltered to confusion. "How the heck did it get up there?"

Lucy shrugged and was about to speak, but before she could, Natsu was already scaling the side of the building like a squirrel up a tree. It was a bit surprising how quickly he was ascending, but at the same time it wasn't.

In no time at all, Natsu had reached the top and was trying to figure out how to get his scarf off the flagpole. After a few seconds of fiddling, he succeeded, holding his price above his head in triumph. But he lost his balance in the process.

The half-Fire Dragon tumbled down the side of the roof, much to Lucy's alarm. Without much thought, Lucy tried to catch him, but when he hit her, she was unable to withstand the force in which he hit her with and they collapsed onto the pavement.

"Ow."

"Ha ha! I got it!" Natsu cheered, sitting up.

"That's great." Lucy said dryly, "Could you get off me?"

Some degree of annoyed muttering came from the pinkette as he scooted off of Lucy and allowed her to sit up. As she did, a sharp pain shot through her left arm, making her wince. Experimentally, Lucy unbowed her elbow. Another bolt of pain went through her, making her wince again. But thankfully it didn't appear that her arm was broken.

"You okay Luce?"

Lucy nodded and stood but keeping her left arm stiffly at her side to avoid jostling it and causing herself more pain.

Natsu stood as well, but it didn't look like he believed her completely. "Are you sure?"

She nodded again. "My arm's a little sore, but it'll be fine."

"Alright. Just checking. It would really suck if you got seriously hurt again, Lucy."

A smile broke out on Lucy's face and Natsu grinned back. When they walked back into the guild, everyone was stopped what they were doing for a brief second and looked at them before continuing to straighten up the guild. Except for Mirajane, who was looking at the two of them with a strangely accomplished smile.

…

"There. All done." Lucy said to herself.

The half-Celestial clapped the loose dirt off her hands and stood back to admire her handywork. After the whole fiasco with Natsu's scarf mysteriously appearing on the flagpole, Lucy decided to finally get to planting the chylluas she had taken from Konzern before they withered in her bag. Thankfully, she seemed to have done it just in time. The plant's gold and navy petals had just began to become brittle, but since she had put them back in soil and watered them, they seemed to have become refreshed.

Lucy simply admired the beautiful flowers for a moment as the sunlight streaming through the large window played on their petals, lighting up small specks of silver among the navy like stars in a midnight sky.

However, the door to her left being suddenly thrown open ruined this peaceful moment as Natsu stormed in.

"Hey Lucy! Wanna watch me beat the sh-" Natsu shouted.

But the half-Fire Dragon was cut off when he tripped over a stack of stare pots and stumbled into the table where Lucy had worked on her plants at and fell face-first into the pots, unable to regain his balance in time.

Lucy screamed in outrage and horror. "NATSU! WHAT THE HECK!? YOU'RE GOING TO CRUSH THEM!"

However, despite her shouting, Natsu didn't even budge. Finally, she got a little concerned and rolled him off the plants. The pot was knocked over in the process and to her surprise, the half-Fire Dragon was dead weight in her arms. Since she didn't expect that, she lost her grip and he crumbled to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

"Natsu? Are you okay?"

The only response she got was a weird mix between a groan and a laugh. Slowly, the demi-dragon rolled onto his back, but something was a little off. His pupils were _huge_. Now, Natsu's eyes were always a pretty intense black, but currently they were black as tar in contrast to their normal obsidian.

The second strange thing she noticed was the race that Natsu was smiling like a drunken sailor and actually drooling.

 _What the heck?_

The pounding of footsteps interrupted her thoughts as more people entered the room.

"Lucy! What's wrong? We heard you shout!" Erza demanded as she stormed into the room, Happy not far behind.

Wordlessly, she pointed down at Natsu, who was flailing his arms in a possible attempt to get up. Silence settled over the room, save for Natsu's useless flailing. At least until Happy started giggling like a schoolgirl.  
"He looks like a cat on catnip!" the blue cat snorted.

Erza tilted her head. "You're right Happy. Lucy, what happened to Natsu to reduce him to this state?"

"Um, well. He came storming into the room and tripped into the flower pot." she pointed at the overturned pot that housed the chylluas, "After that, he started acting like this."

By this point, Natsu had somehow gotten himself up and was stumbling around the room and running into things periodically while Happy laughed at him. Erza nodded at Lucy in acknowledgement before grabbing Natsu by the scarf and dragging him out of the room. In his current state, it wasn't terribly difficult to get him to change direction, but at the same time he lost his balance and Erza literally had to drag him out of the room.

Though it wasn't hard for the redhead.

Lucy and Happy followed behind Erza but soon after they left the room, someone spoke to them.

"What the heck happened to Salamander?" Gajeel asked, studying Natsu with mild curiosity.

"He fell into some flowers and now he's acting all dopey!" Happy laughed.

"Flowers?" the half-Iron Dragon echoed, not quite believing, "Salamander was taken out by flowers?"

Suddenly, Erza gasped, drawing everyone's attention to her.

"Erza? What's wrong?" Lucy asked, concerned.

The Requip mage paused, her eyes wide in disbelief. "He-He's... _purring._ "

Leaning closer, it was easy for Lucy to hear the deep rumbling in Natsu's throat that was reminiscent of a cat purring. An unexpected snort escaped her.

"What the hell-a kind of flowers were those!?" the half-Iron Dragon exclaimed.

"These ones!" Happy exclaimed, holding up one of Lucy's chylluas in his paw, roots and all.

Lucy just about had a heart attack. "HAPPY! WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING!? I JUST PLANTED THOSE!"

However, the half-Celestial only found herself ignored. Gajeel plucked the flower out of Happy's paw. He studied it for a moment with a harsh ruby red glare before bringing the bloom to his nose and took a deep sniff.

And he dropped like a stone a second after. Gajeel fell backwards and hit the floorboards with a massive _thud_ that shook the building. His eyes had rolled into the back of his head, mumbling incoherent words, his hand still clutching the chyllua.

"What the heck!?" Gray exclaimed, "Are those flowers magic or something?"

"Of cour-...Uh...I'm actually not sure." Lucy admitted, "If they are, they never affected me. Especially like this."

"Alright. What's going on over here?" Makarov's voice asked.

The whole group, with the exceptions of Natsu and Gajeel, jumped at the old wizard's voice as he had seemed to magically appear behind them. Makarov's face was creased with curiosity and more than obvious confusion as he observed the two demidragons as they mumbled and laughed like they were drunk.

"These two idiots took a whiff of Lucy's flowers and then they started acting like this." Gray said, jabbing both his thumbs in the half-dragons' general directions.

"They smelled a flower?" Makarov repeated, appearing to not quite believe with Gray was saying.

This time the guild master turned to Erza, who nodded a wordless confirmation. He turned again to Natsu and Gajeel, who still looked as ridiculous as before.

"Alrighty then. Ms. Lucy. May I see those flowers?" he asked.

"At least you asked." Lucy said, shooting a glare at Happy.

Lucy pulled the chyllua out of Gajeel's grasp and handed it to Makarov. The old wizard's brow furrowed as he examined the flower. And then an amused smile bloomed on his face. He gave Lucy her flower back, still grinning and looking to be on the verge of laughter.

"They'll be fine. Those two idiots just made the poor decision to smell a chyllua. They just need to work it out of their system."

"What exactly do you mean by that Master?" Erza asked.

The requip mage was currently holding Natsu at arm's length by a section of his hair as the half-Fire Dragon drooled mindlessly and made feeble grabs for Erza's scarlet red hair with a dull hunger in his eyes. Maybe even in this strange state, the only thing that occupied Natsu's thoughts was food and Erza's hair reminded him of meat.

Makarov chuckled deeply. "Well, these are no ordinary flowers, as you may have guessed by now. The chyllua is a flower that emits a sweet smell and to creatures with fairly poor senses of smell, like us humans, it's a pleasant scent. But to creatures with heightened senses of smell like dragons, the smell is extremely disorienting."

"So what does that mean?" Happy asked, confused.

"It means that it's like catnip to 'em." Gray explained.

"Exactly."

And with that, the guild master walked away without another word.

"What the heck is he doing...?" Gray muttered.

Lucy was wondering that herself and watched the short wizard walk to Mira and say something to her. Mira nodded, grinning and walked off to who-knows-where. After that strange event took place, Makarov returned to the group, an unusually satisfied look on his face.

"In short." He continued, "We just have to wait for the effects to wear off. It shouldn't be long given that they weren't exposed to it for terribly long."

"I'm getting a funny feeling there's going to be something more to this…" Lucy mumbled under her breath.

"So in the meantime, I'm going to have Mirajane record the whole thing!" Makarov grinned.

...

...an hour later…

...

"Owww….my head hurts…" Natsu complained, one hand firmly planted on his temple.

"Did anyone get the number on that train that hit me..?" Gajeel added.

Both half-dragons came out of their chyllua-induced high within minutes of each other, and with matching headaches. Of course, this wasn't before they had wrecked a little havoc on the guild. Well, it actually was only Natsu who did since Gajeel was virtually stoned. The half-Fire Dragon had been nothing short of an absolute terror while under the catnip-like influence of the chyllua.

She decided when he started to accidentally set tables and chairs on fire that she would never let him anywhere _near_ a chyllua ever again. Mira had been standing by with a lacrama powered camera recording the whole thing as it went down just as Makarov had said, but he didn't look terribly thrilled that Natsu was regurgitating fire on his tables and reducing them to ashes.

Thankfully for the guild, the effects wore off quickly and Natsu and Gajeel crashed back down to this plain of reality. Both with splitting headaches.

Though Lucy noticed that in the time they were attempting to figure out what the heck had happened, the guild was snickering at them while looking at Mira's camera. A roar of laughter rose from it, drawing Natsu's attention.

"What are they laughing at?" he murmured.

The half-Fire Dragon stumbled over to the crowd, still clutching his head in one hand and forced his way through with the other until he disappeared into the sea of people.

"Does he know that Mira recorded the whole incident on lacrama?" Erza inquired, folding her arms neatly.

"No." Lucy sighed.

"WHAT!? IS THAT ME AND THE METAL-MUNCHER!? WHEN WAS _THIS_ TAKEN!?" Natsu's voice exclaimed suddenly.

Another wave of laughter overtook the crowd and a small smile was kindled on Lucy's face. Life was never dull, at least not anymore.

…

 **Okay. I have something I've got to say and you ALL better read this.**

 **I am sick and tired of repeating myself when I ask people to not demand updates. I used to tolerate it, but it's getting really aggravating and it pisses me off that people will just leave a review asking for an update (thankfully people I have told off of it directly have stayed off of it and I thank you for that).**

 **Reviews like that are plainly stressful to the author because apparently all you have to say is "please update" or something of the like (maybe worded in a VERY INSENSITIVE FASHION). ESPECIALLY when they have recently updated or explicitly stated that they can't update anytime soon for personal reasons, or a reason they can't control. And mind you all, this doesn't just apply to me. This applies to all authors on ANY website that original work is posted on. It's just common courtesy. Authors are dependent on feedback to give them motivation to work on the story and "please update" isn't very encouraging. In fact, it has the opposite effect. Sure, it's nice for an author, budding or otherwise, to know that people want to read their work, but saying "please update" isn't all you should say. Some writers might get stressed out because they feel like they're on a deadline and they have to keep a constant update schedule because they have to please everyone.**

 **17 reviews on this story are either completely or mostly people asking for updates (I have counted and I'm being generous with this number. There were many more, but they either had more than just a demand for an update or they phrased it in a polite way, so I let it slide). I was lenient about it in the past mostly because I didn't reply to every review on the previous chapter then, but now it's just gotten frustrating.**

 **I understand that you all like this story and you want to see what I have planned next and I'm thankful you do! But please understand that fanfiction writers don't do this full-time! We're middle school students, high school students, college students, and maybe even adults with jobs we have to go to that pay our bills and put food on our tables.**

 **We get writer's block. The wifi goes out. Our computers crash. We go on vacations with our families. People we care about get sick or hurt.** _ **We**_ **get sick or hurt. And sometimes we just don't have motivation. The list goes on.**

 **My point is, we are everyday people who write these things because we love to write and we love this thing we're writing about and we want to share that love with everyone. And there are people who do this because they need an outlet or an escape and your reviews may affect them more than they would other authors.**

 **So please put a little more thought into your reviews. You don't know who the person behind the screen is, why they write, or how sensitive they are to other people's words. All I'm asking is to show a little more courtesy towards fanfiction writers when you review and if you can't think of anything to say other than "please update", at least word it in a polite way and add a complement to it. Or just don't say anything at all. You words mean a lot to writers, including me, so just think before you review.**

 **See you all next time.**


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N: Salvete (Hi) everyone. Sorry this took so long. School's been a real butt-kicker lately, so time for writing is limited. I also haven't been feeling motivated to write this story lately for some reason and that hasn't been helping much ;-;**

 **Also, cool news. After the next chapter (chp 42 for clarification), we are going to be approaching the climax of the story soon because the next chapter will be the beginning of a new arc. The Natus Stellarum Arc.**

 **Get hyped everyone. I think you all are going to** _ **love**_ **what I have planned for this arc ;)**

 **Reviews:**

 **Johnny Spectre** **: Yep. That was my intention. I kind of modelled Natsu and Gajeel's reactions to the chylluas after my cats when they're exposed to catnip. They really have one of two reactions, drunk/hyper and completely stoned XD**

 **Queenbooklover** **: Thanks, but don't be** _ **too**_ **hard on them. Update demands are a pet peeve of mine, that much is true, but it isn't like they're hating on my work *shrugs***

 **NaluhasNashi** **: The thing that happened was that I went on a musical ambassador trip to Europe. It was a lot of fun and I hope I'll get to do it again some time :) That went on for a little over two weeks and I had no time to write (heck, I barely had time to sleep) and when I came back I got hit with a couple more trips and a summer project for school (that I hadn't known about until recently) and needless to say it was a pretty busy summer. My only regret was that I only made one or two story updates the whole time.**

 **sarah1.8** **: I'm glad to have posted one :) It had been WAY too long.**

 **FlameDragonHime** **: Exactly.**

 **CanadianOtaku13** **: Thank you so much. That means the world to me that people enjoy my work. I write because I love writing and I love knowing that people like what I make, so thank you for saying that :)**

 **UnlimitedMagic** **: Chapter 2 probably was the best one I've ever written because of that one line XD Funny story though, I actually edited the story a lot when I started because I** _ **did**_ **originally make them join the guild, but thanks to a review, I changed the course completely. Glad I did too. But Happy didn't join Natsu and Lucy because I kind of want to focus on just the two of them mostly and I would always forget he's there. I always forget the Exceeds DX But in terms of the encounters order, I took some creative liberties there since Natsu is half-dragon instead of...well...you know, so his power levels are insanely higher and that development really isn't as necessary. I get what you're saying, but I like it better this way :)**

 **Sydneste** **: Oh my gosh thank you. That is so unbelievably sweet 0\\\\\\\0 *so much blush* and you were not corny at all saying that, that means a lot to me. I don't really know what Touka's kagune looks like because I don't watch TG (I tried, but it was so confusing that it just lost me...) but when Natsu's wings** _ **do**_ **appear (and they will in the near-ish future), it's going to be pretty cool. I think you're going to like it. And thank you for understanding why this took so long *hugs* :)**

 **Uchida Akira** **: Thank you :) Though the idea is that the smell of the flower was overpowering for creatures that have an enhanced sense of smell (like half-dragons). It's not exactly that half-Celestials like Lucy and Layla are immune to the effects, it's just that everyone else doesn't have a sensitive enough nose to be effected.**

 **peacerockgirl123** **: My lord, you are so sweet. You read this** _ **whole story**_ **in a few hours!? That's awesome! Thank you for dedicating so much time to read this story! And thank you for understanding, it really means a lot :)**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

"Are you sure you want to leave so soon?" Erza asked Levy and Gajeel as they stood in the door, "You're welcome to stay longer if you wish, Levy."

"Thanks Erza. That's really nice of you, but we've got some stuff to take care of back in Hajimari. But we'll try to stop by soon." the Solid Script mage assured, "What about you two? Will we expect to see you back in Hajimari soon?"

Lucy nodded. "Definitely, we still have to look through that book we found on half-dragons."

"Oh that's right." Levy murmured, "I completely forgot about that. I'm glad you remembered Lu-chan."

"Oi Shrimp. We goin' or what?" Gajeel grunted impatiently.

Behind Levy, Gajeel and Pantherlily were waiting for her, the latter being much more patient than the former. The Solid Script mage smirked then nodded, which Gajeel returned with a toothier one of his own. The half-Iron Dragon unfurled a pair of metallic iron wings that had been polished to a blinding shine, wrapped an arm around Levy's waist, lifting the small girl off the ground completely in the process, and took off with a powerful beat of his wings, Lily not far behind. In seconds, they were gone.

After the trio had departed, attention then centered on Lucy.

"So, Lucy." Erza asked, "What exactly is making you and Natsu stay for an extra day?"

"Well…" Lucy trailed.

A sudden crash followed by a burst of victorious laughter answered the Titania's question before Lucy could. In the center of the guild, Natsu was having the time of his life exchanging friendly blows with his new pals in Fairy Tail. Erza and Lucy had decided to let the half-Fire Dragon let off some steam with the rest of the more fight-happy members on the condition that he kept the destruction to a minimum. So far, he wasn't doing too bad in that department.

"He's enjoying himself a lot. Besides, an extra day won't hurt." Lucy grinned.

Then a flying table mowed her down and into the guildhall doors, that had been closed following Levy and Gajeel's departure.

"This however...does. Ow." the half-Celestial moaned.

…

The day passed with much laughter and play and before Lucy knew it, it was getting dark. The half-Celestial admittedly didn't want to leave the relative safety and warmth of the guild, but she knew that they'd be back in the near future.

Makarov had been kind enough to let Lucy and Natsu sleep in the guildhall over night and though they were sleeping on wood, it was comforting and friendly. For a moment, Lucy entertained the idea of becoming part of this guild. This family. They'd already accepted both of her and Natsu as their own even though neither of them bore their emblem on their flesh as the others did. It was a pleasant thought, but maybe she and Natsu could, would join someday. Just not today.

That night, Lucy fell asleep on a tabletop in the Fairy Tail guildhall with Natsu not too far away, the half-Fire Dragon's snores echoing quietly around the empty space. At that moment as Lucy drifted to sleep, she couldn't feel safer.

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Natsu woke early the next morning. The sun had barely peaked the large window above the door, but enough light trickled into the room for him to make out the vague shapes of objects in the room. Natsu stood up and stretched before turning his attention to Lucy's still form on the table not too far from where he stood. A mischievous grin bloomed on his face.

The half-Fire Dragon tiptoed ever-so-quietly to where Lucy slept, his bare feet making only minimal noise on the old floorboards. When he loomed over Lucy, he did the only natural thing he could do. He tickled her.

"Wakey, wakey Lucy!" he shouted as he viciously worked his hands over her body.

He expected Lucy to bolt right up the moment he started, however, the blonde mage didn't even stir. And he was hitting all of her most ticklish spots too! Natsu blinked in confusion, halting his assault. This time he nudged her gently, thinking, hoping that maybe she was fighting back her laughter. Once again, he got no response.

Not even a single twitch. Now Natsu was getting worried.

He transitioned from nudging to full on shaking, but as before, Lucy didn't respond, her head lolled limply to the side as the half-Fire Dragon stopped shaking her, but still kept his grip on her shoulders.

"Lucy..? Hey, cut this out. This isn't funny. Is this payback for the marker thing or somethin'?" he asked, his voice cracking ever so slightly.

SIlence.

The pinkette laid Lucy back down and rushed into the kitchen behind the bar and retrieved a full mug of water and rushing back to Lucy's side, almost spilling the contents of the mug when his foot caught on a barstool. He did recover in time to minimize the spillage.

He proceeded to dump the water on Lucy's face, one of his usual techniques for waking Lucy up in the morning. No response. He put the mug down with trembling hands and leaned closer to listen to her heartbeat.

There was none. _There was no heartbeat_.

 _Lucy_ had no heartbeat.

A hard lump formed at the base of his throat as he straightened up. He couldn't believe it. He _wouldn't_ believe it. Lucy couldn't be dead! Her skin still felt so warm. So _alive_.

So why was her heart not beating?

"Lucy…" he croaked, clutching her still warm hand in his, "Lucy! Why won't you wake up? Lucy! Do _something_! I know you hate mornings, but this is freaking me out! Wake up, Lucy!"

Not long after he said those desperate words, the guildhall door creaked open as someone entered the building, judging from their scent, it was Master Makarov. The old wizard was whistling a cheerful tune then suddenly stopped.

"Good morning Natsu. How are you this morning?" he greeted brightly.

The half-Fire Dragon was too choked up on despair and grief to answer right away. Makarov seemed to sense his distress.

Makarov approached with cautious footsteps. "Natsu…? Is everything alright?"

The half-Fire Dragon shook his head. "O-Old man, something's wrong with...Lucy! She won't wake up!"

At this announcement, Makarov hurried to the Lucy's side and checked for a pulse. His brow furrowed in confusion.

"I will get Polyuscia. Move Lucy to the infirmary."

The half-Fire Dragon quickly scooped Lucy's limp body off the table which she had slept on and rushed her to the infirmary before carefully depositing the Celestial mage onto the nearest empty cot. When the task had been completed, Natsu took a moment to try to come to terms with what was happening.

However, he just couldn't. He wasn't much for logic, but this made absolutely no sense to him. Just the day before, Lucy had been so full of life and energy and now...now she was like a corpse. An unusually warm corpse.

It was like someone had flipped a switch while she was asleep, turning her from the energetic, loud, brave and sometimes annoying mage he'd grown to think of as a friend, to something completely alien from that.

Thankfully, before Natsu could get too deep into his own head, the infirmary door was flung wide open by a lady with purple-pink hair. Her harsh eyes flickered from Natsu to Lucy and she rushed to the bedside, setting her medicine bag on the end of the bed and flung it open. She pulled out a stethoscope and held it to Lucy's chest.

"When did her heart stop beating?" the lady asked in a stern tone.

Natsu didn't reply. He couldn't bring himself to speak.

"Natsu says that her heart wasn't beating when he woke up." Makarov informed in the half-Fire Dragon's place.

"Well she's a strange corpse." she said curtly, "Her body hasn't settled into post mortem and she's practically overflowing with magic, which isn't consistent with someone who is deceased."

She draped the stethoscope across her shoulders and straightened up.

"Is there anything you can do?" Natsu asked, managing to form words though his voice was so surprisingly void of emotion, it even surprised him.

Porlyusca sighed deeply. "I'm afraid not. I can't conclude if she's dead or not. There is a chance that whatever this is, is magically induced, but other than that, I can't say for sure."

The healer snapped her bag shut and picked it up before walking out the door. Makarov followed, leaving Natsu alone with his maybe-dead friend.

…

The hours trickled by like sand through his hands and before he knew it, it was growing dark outside. Lucy's condition hadn't changed in those hours and news of what happened had spread through the guild like wildfire. Happy had come to sit vigil by Lucy's bedside with Natsu and the little blue cat was unusually depressed.

He had come in when Erza, Gray, and some other members of the guild barged into the infirmary. They were all as shocked and baffled as Natsu was by Lucy's sudden condition as she was in perfect health the day before. The rest of the guild was saddened by the news from what Natsu had heard, but most didn't fully understand due to never getting to know the Celestial Mage on a personal level.

As for Natsu, he's only moved once from his spot all day, which was not very good for his health, or so he's heard. Well, he understood that it probably wasn't good for his mental health. For most of the day, the half-Fire Dragon had been left alone with his thoughts. All the "what-ifs" and "shoulda, coulda, wouldas" swirled in his head like a poison mist. By the end of the day, he was 90% convinced that this whole mess was his fault somehow. That if he could have done one thing differently, his friend wouldn't be...like this.

He still clung to hope that she was alive, but the stillness of her heart and breath made that hope fade and fade. His eyes were starting to get heavy. He barely even registered Happy muttering a goodbye to him as the blue cat left for the night and the half-Fire Dragon eventually fell asleep by the bedside.

…

A sudden and loud gasp startled Natsu out of his dreamless sleep. On instinct, his fists were ablaze with orange-red fire, for just a moment believing that he was under attack. However, the sight of the moon-lit silhouette of Lucy's body spasming as she coughed and gasped confirmed otherwise. Relief welled in Natsu's chest and he let the flames flicker out.

Lucy had bolted straight up in the bed, clutching her chest and gasping for breath as if she hadn't been breathing for the past 24 hours. Which as far as the half-Fire Dragon was aware, she wasn't.

"L-Lucy..?" Natsu asked, though his voice was a little hoarse from choking back grief all day.

The Celestial mage gave a small nod as she caught her breath. "Natsu…? What are we doing in the infirmary?" she asked, complete cluelessness in her voice.

However, Natsu was barely listening. His arms were clamped tightly around Lucy's torso before he even knew he did it himself. Lucy stopped talking and following a moment of surprised hesitation, returned the hug, albeit a little awkwardly. They stayed like that for a while, mostly because Natsu was reluctant to let go out of fear that if he let her go than she would disappear forever this time.

"Natsu. I'm fine, really." Lucy assured.

With some reluctance, Natsu retracted his embrace, though remained within arm's reach of the Celestial Mage. Lucy was still breathing a bit heavily, but Natsu noticed other things had changed. Her hair seemed less golden and the magical presence that had surrounded her had significantly diminished. Natsu actually didn't even notice these changes had taken place all day until they had disappeared. Adding yet another mystery to this strange and terrifying day.

"What happened?" Natsu asked, almost in a demanding tone, "You haven't been breathing all day! What the heck was that?"

As he spoke, his voice rose, more out of panic than anger, but Lucy flinched nonetheless.

"Hmm…? Have I...been out all day?" she asked, completely oblivious.

"Try not breathing! I...We...we thought you were dead."

Lucy's eyes widened at the news and a groan escaped her lips as she buried her forehead in her palms. "That was today? How could I have forgotten?" she mumbled into her hands.

"Huh? What'cha talkin' about?"

Lucy straightened up and sighed. "Uh. It's a bit embarrassing, but once every year I kind of slip into some kind of coma. I don't really know why, but it happens on the same day every year. It looks like I'm dead because I'm not breathing, but the minute midnight hits, I start again."

Natsu rose a brow. "This happens every year? Sounds like a half-dragon's Special Days."

The Celestial Mage was silent for a moment before she gasped lightly then went silent again, a pained realization in her moonlit eyes.

Taking a deep breath, she spoke quietly. "That may be because it's a half-god thing."

The half-Fire Dragon's heart almost stopped. "WHAT!? You're….are you…!? What?!"

Lucy looked away, almost ashamed. "Sorry I didn't tell y-...anyone. I only found out a few days ago, so this is as surprising to me as it is to you."

"Why didn't you tell us!?" he asked, "This is great!"

"Huh?" Lucy asked, her eyes snapping back to him, "It...is?"

Natsu beamed with excitement. "Yeah! You're part of the family!"

It actually made perfect sense to Natsu. This news explained exactly why Lucy was so...Lucy. Why he liked to be around her so much. She was like him! Well, not exactly like him, but she was a half-blood too!

A grateful smile formed on Lucy's face before being stifled by a large, cat-like yawn.

Natsu laughed. "Geez Luce. You've been asleep all day and you're still tired?"

The half-Celestial swatted his arm lightly. "I wasn't _actually_ asleep."

Lucy nestled back down under the pure white blankets, letting out a deep, tired sigh as she did.

"You gonna sleep Natsu?" she asked, her voice garbled with exhaustion.

Natsu didn't really know how to respond until a yawn rose from his own mouth. He nodded his response and settled back down on the edge of the bed, resting his cheek on his arms and closed his eyes. Lucy fell silent soon too and the only sounds that filled in the room was the sound of his own and Lucy's breathing.

…

 **A/N: While writing this chapter, I just imagined a television moderator saying "We interrupt our regularly scheduled fluff to bring you this important character development".**

 **I just thought it was funny.**

 **Ignore me.**

 **Also the new arc name is latin and I got it from Google Translate (last year, because that's when I started planning this arc) and they have awful latin because they don't know a lot about declensions and conjugations, but the translation is actually spot on. *shock***

 **Valete. Bye. (I'm going to start and end with latin now ^.^** 9 **)**


	42. Chapter 42

**A/N: Salvete everyone! Happy New Year! And I hope everyone had a great holiday (whichever one[s] you celebrate). Oh gosh. I haven't updated in like 3 months. Sorry this took so long. I hit a writing low point with this story and I got super busy. Unfortunately, this might be a regular thing since this year is killing me and I might not have much time, energy or motivation to write. Sorry ahead of time if updates keep taking this long.**

 **One more announcement before we start. I've finally got a Tumblr now. My URL is "purewriting" in case any of you want to look at it. I'd appreciate it if you did.**

 **Reviews:**

 **Guest** **: Patience meum amicum. It will come.**

 **Sarara1.8** **: I'm really really glad you liked it. I was agonizing over this chapter for a while to make sure I could convey the emotion of the situation, so I'm glad it's good :)**

 **NaluhasNashi** **: I did enjoy myself (on the trip I mean)! I hope you had a wonderful week too :)**

 **Peacerockgirl123** **: Funny story. I had been working on that chapter for a few months and finished it earlier that week and was somewhat procrastinating posting it because I had homework I had to do (rip me) and ended up posting it on Sunday not long after you reviewed my story. Also can I just...hug you? You're so sweet! It makes me endlessly happy that people get excited about my work :)**

 **Queenbooklover** **: No prob Queenie :)**

 **StardragonXX** **: Thank you so much!**

 **Idkman (Guest)** **: Thank you! But I don't have any writing powers though... T~T. Thank you very much for taking interest in my story. It really means a lot to me that people appreciate my work :)**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

After the scare from Lucy's apparent Day of Immortality, the Fairy Tail guild was more reluctant than ever to let her and Natsu leave even after Lucy reassured them multiple times that she was 100% okay. They were not completely convinced, but hesitantly let Natsu and Lucy leave though under the promise they would visit when they can. The parting was full of laughter and well wishes and before Lucy knew it, she and Natsu were on the road again.

"So what are we gonna do next?" Natsu asked after a half-hour of silence.

"Well, we still have that book we found to look at." Lucy suggested.

"Oh yeah." the half-Fire Dragon replied, "Why'd you and Levy have that anyway? I know you're both fond of books, but…"

Lucy flinched at the memory of the book's cover. "To be honest, I don't know. I don't remember ever getting that book. Most of our stock are donations or stuff we bought with our own money and we cataloged all of them." the blonde hummed thoughtfully, "I'm sure I'd remember a book with that... _unique_ of a cover."

"Huh. Weird."

…

The journey back to Hajimari was thankfully uneventful. The time was largely occupied by Lucy and Natsu chatting. For a moment, Lucy thought back to when they first met. If she was going to be blunt, she thought Natsu was odd. Not because of him being a half-dragon, but because of his overwhelming...personality? She wasn't sure how to put it exactly. He could be really sweet and caring one minute and then take a total 180 and make a snarky comment about her the next! But the more time she spent with him on this...journey, the more he seemed to change. There weren't as many jabs as before and Natsu seemed to have relaxed significantly around her.

Lucy still couldn't forget the face he made when she woke up from her Day of Immortality. She couldn't put a name to the expression, but it struck her to her very core. Not telling Natsu about her true nature up until that point had been poor communication on her part and Lucy was determined to not repeat that mistake. But he seemed to have long since gotten over it.

Though something told Lucy that there was still something bothering him that he wouldn't tell her.

 _Maybe he'll tell me when he's ready. I shouldn't force him to talk._ Lucy pondered, _Besides, we still have the main goal to achieve. We should try to avoid getting sidetracked from now on._

Overall though, Lucy has grown to respect Natsu. He's not the mindless thug he had appeared to be at first and Lucy is deeply thankful that their paths crossed. It scared Lucy to think of what would have been if Natsu hadn't intervened when Bora attacked her.

"Yo Lucy! You're spacin' out again!"

A hand being waved in front of her face brought her back to reality.

"Hm? Sorry Natsu. Just thinking." Lucy said.

The half-Fire Dragon nodded in acknowledgement before continuing. An excited smile was plastered to his face and a genuine one too. The sight brought Lucy to mirror Natsu's smile with one of her own. It was nice to see him happy especially after all that had happened. It's been a wild few weeks and Lucy was worried that neither of them would be able to look past the events that had been. Or could have been.

Eventually they arrived at the store. The windows were lit up with the friendly white glow of lacrama lights and Lucy could see the shadows of people walking in the space. A relieved sigh passed through the half-Celestial's lips.

"Home sweet home."

Natsu practically lunged for the door handle and flung the door open.

"We're back!" he called into the building.

"'Bout time Salamander! You're late!" Gajeel shouted from inside.

"How was your travels? Is Lucy with you?" Levy asked.

Lucy popped her head in the doorway past Natsu. "It wasn't bad. Though we had a few hitches."

"Like what?" Gajeel asked, raising a studded eyebrow as the duo entered.

"Uh….well. My Day of Immortality…" Lucy mumbled, embarrassed.

There was a moment of silence.

"You're day of what?" the half-Iron Dragon asked.

"Oh!" Levy exclaimed, "So _that_ 's what that was."

Natsu's eyes almost bugged out of his head. "Wait, you knew about that!?"

"Yeah? I wasn't sure what it was exactly, but Lu-chan told me not to worry about it."

"She didn't tell me…" Natsu mumbled.

Lucy swatted his arm. "Sorry, I forgot!"

"How exactly do you forget that?"

"Where do I start? There were the several times I got kidnapped-"

"Okay, hold your lover's quarrel for a bit." Gajeel cut in, making the 'time out' signal, "That Day of Immortality thing sounds a lot like a half-blood thing. Are you…?"

Lucy nodded. "My mother was a Celestial Goddess apparently. I only found out a couple days ago."

A moment of heavy silence.

"Really?" Levy asked, surprise highlighting her tone, "How though?"

The blonde flinched, "My...dad told me."

A deep, rumbling chuckle came from Gajeel's throat. "Heh. That actually makes sense. I always knew there was something about you I liked, Bunny Girl."

"Anyway," Natsu inserted, with a raised tone, "Could we look at that book now?"

"Huh? Which book?" the Solid Script mage asked, not quite catching what the half-Fire Dragon meant.

"That book we found before...uh...before we got...sidetracked." Lucy clarified.

"Way ahead of you." said Pantherlily's voice.

The small dark furred cat leapt gracefully onto the closest table with a thick stack of papers in under his arm.

"Thanks Lily." Gajeel said, petting his companion affectionately behind his rounded ears in gratitude.

Lucy gave her thanks to Pantherlily and took the book pages from him. She noted that in the time that had passed, the book had been bound with a new cover, cardboard this time. The new spine creaked in protest as she opened it and began to examine the contents.

"Hm. Odd." she muttered.

"What is it?" Natsu asked trying to read over her shoulder.

"It's written in several languages. Ancient ones too. I don't know if I can read much of this."

"I think I saw some books about ancient languages somewhere." Gajeel muttered, "I'll go check."

The half-Iron Dragon then grabbed Natsu's scarf and started dragging him to the stacks.

"And you're gonna help me look."

"WHA- I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE HALF THE STUFF IS!" Natsu protested.

Levy sighed. "I can help you with some of the translations Lu-chan. I'm sure there's enough linguistic knowledge between us to figure some of it out."

…

"This is so boring!" Natsu sighed, resting his head on the table.

"Translation takes a while Natsu." Lucy muttered.

The half-Fire Dragon groaned. "Whacha got so far?"

Lucy shuffled through her notes. "Uh, not much. How about you Levy?"

Levy sighed and laid down her pencil. "I don't have much either unfortunately. This book is written in ten languages each page!" she sighed and rested in the chair, "It's going to take a really long time to translate. I'm not even sure if we have all the books we need to translate this."

Natsu groans and Lucy silently agrees.

…

They worked past midnight on the translation, but the book was such a mess of languages ancient and unknown that they only managed to get a general idea of one small part of the book. It wasn't about getting wings, instead it was about a half-Dragon's Draconic Day. From what they gathered, if a half-dragon feels a strong emotion -they assume negative -the half-Dragon would become trapped in their dragon form even after the day is over. How they get out of it, the group couldn't figure out. Gajeel and Natsu seemed a bit shaken by that, but honestly everyone was. They could get stuck in the dragon forms for an unknown amount of time. Maybe a few hours, maybe forever. Needless to say, it was unnerving.

But the sun had set, everyone was tired. So they all were crashing in Levy and Lucy's shared apartment. Or really Gajeel and Levy's shared apartment since Lucy hasn't stayed here in a long time.

"It's...a lot more crowded than I remember." Lucy mumbled.

Levy laughed tiredly, muttered a good night and trudged to her room. Gajeel and Lily flopped face first on the couch and fell asleep on the spot. Natsu did something similar with a pillow, a blanket and the floor. Lucy said goodnight to the three and the groaned back, probably returning the phrase as Lucy disappeared into her own room.

It was just as she left it. Well, almost. On her bed was something that looked like a book, but she couldn't tell which one since it was so dark. Lucy sat down on the edge of her bed and picked it up. The weight was familiar in her hand and by the light of the moon coming through her window, Lucy could read the title.

"'Draco Celestial'," she read aloud, "Huh. I haven't read this book…*yawn*...in ages."

In her exhaustion, Lucy could only recall the brief summary of the story. Basically, it was about a dragon that wanted to become one with the stars by searching for a Celestial Clock called the "Natus Stellarum". It was one of her favorites as a kid, but Lucy was too tired to revisit the better years of her childhood. She put the book on her bed and flopped down under the covers.

…

 **A/N: This took way longer than I wanted it too and it's so short in comparison to my other chapters….ugh. And this was just the transition chapter. We start getting into the actual plot next chapter. Thank you all for your patience :)**

 **Valete.**


	43. Chapter 43

**A/N: Salvete! Okay, so. I have changed my Pen Name to match my Tumblr URL because it's easier and also I've been meaning to update my Pen Name for a while now *cough* two years *cough*. But sorry this update took so long.**

 **Review** **:**

 **NaluhasNashi** **: I'm glad you enjoyed it! And you get excited for my story? Ahhhhhhh that makes me happy. And isn't this recent canon arc so disappointing? It feels so rushed and nothing holds any meaning. Thankfully it's started picking up and I'm a lot happier about it because it feels like it's paced a bit better and the characters are being used better. But about the recent chapter, I heard that some people are mad that Lucy whipped a pen out of nowhere, but she was a journalist during the year long time skip so it makes sense she developed the habit of carrying a pen with her and I think a lot of people forgot about that *shrugs*.**

 **Queenbooklover** **: You knew I was alive! We've talked recently!**

 **BelovedDarkness648** **: I live for playful banter. Too bad there isn't a lot of it in the real thing T-T Oh well. That's what's fanfiction is for.**

 **Peacerockgirl123** **: School is evil. It's what's been keeping me from my writing and it makes me wanna cry. And I'm sorry the end is coming, but it was going to happen sooner or later. All stories have a beginning, middle, and** _ **end**_ **after all *wink wink nudge nudge*.**

 **NaluNom** **: Sorry! The last chapter was WAY under my usual word count T-T, but there was a place I wanted to leave off and that was how long it ended up.**

 **Bubblegumdrop69x** **: Ahhhhh 0\\\\\\\0 I'm not talented at all! You so nice!**

 **Sarara1.8** **: Thank you :)**

 **Guest** **: It's a sad truth, but they tend to be really dense about this kind of thing (but personally I believe it's more of a self-esteem thing and their thought process is something along the lines of "this amazing person couldn't possible love the totally not amazing me", but idk) and I want to keep it a slow burning relationship. And Natsu was already really comfortable around Lucy before, but knowing that she's like him is the icing on the metaphorical cake :) Gajeel** _ **does**_ **want to beat Natsu over the head for his denseness, but he's decided to let the moron sink or swim on his own. And Celestial Dragon** _ **is**_ **foreshadowing (also now that I think about it, a ship name…). And I** _ **am**_ **going to shatter your puny heart into a million tiny shards. And laugh :)**

 **Tmmathewitch** **: thank you! I have no idea what I'm doing sometimes, but I'm glad it's good :)**

 **PotatoGirl14** **: This seems to be a normal thing with my stories. I don't know how it happens though, but I'm glad I'm doing something that's worth your time XD**

 **Deathblade14** **: Glad you enjoy it and thank you for being patient with me and my terrible update schedule .**

 **Lexiboo71** **: *inhales* I appreciate your enthusiasm for my story, I do, but you clearly haven't read the Author's Note at the end of chapter 40, so I will summarize for you. Please don't demand updates from me and fanfic authors in general. I will give it to you when it's done. I'm not mad, but please respect my wishes in the future. I know you likely think it's an expression of interest in the author's work, but it is just really demoralizing when someone just leaves a review asking for more. Again, just for future reference. Please and thank you :)**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Time with Levy and Gajeel came and went all too quickly. They poured over translations for another three days before they did all they could. Unfortunately, it was sort of a waste of time. There was nothing but the previously mentioned fact about a half-dragon's Day of Dragon Form that was new to any of them. The book contained nothing useful about wings that they didn't know already. Natsu had been pestering Gajeel for sometime about how he knew Levy was his soulmate but the half-Iron Dragon just rolled his eyes and walked away, refusing to answer. Lucy had a suspicion that Gajeel knew more than he was letting on, but he looked absolutely done with trying to subtly drop hints for Natsu.

"So what's y'er plan Salamander?" the half-Iron Dragon asked as Lucy and Natsu stood by the door, prepared to leave.

Gajeel and Lily were seeing them off mostly because Levy was still dead to the world. The past few days took the most out of her and Lucy doubted that Gajeel would let Levy out of her room without her first having at least nine hours of good sleep.

The half-Fire Dragon shrugged. "Just gonna go with the flow."

"'Go...with the flow'?" Lily echoed, miffed.

"Yeah, you know…" Natsu then proceeded to wave his arms in mimicry of ocean waves, "...the flow."

Gajeel paused. "That's a stupid plan for a stupid lizard. Now get going."

Lucy and Natsu waved good-bye and exited through the door. The door stayed open for a moment after they passed through it before Lucy heard it close. It was a bit concerning knowing that Natsu didn't have a solid plan outside of 'going with the flow', but she honestly didn't have a better one. Besides, it's kind of what they'd been doing anyway. Trekking from place to place with a loose goal in mind and an even looser plan. They got side-tracked a lot from helping to quell the troubles that struck the people they came to be around, usually troubles that followed them now that she thought about it.

"Ready to go? The road's awaitin'!" Natsu asked, a childish wonder glittering in his eyes.

Lucy nodded. "Sure."

They walked at their own pace, not really in a hurry, but just simply enjoying each other's company and exchanging small talk. However, they had only just made it out of Hajimari when Natsu's head snapped to the left. Lucy was about to ask what was wrong when she heard a shout not even a second later.

And here was their first side quest. That was fast.

No words needed to be exchanged between the two and Natsu bolted towards the noise with Lucy charging behind. There was a dense forest lining the road but it wasn't hard for them to find the source of the shout.

Two men stood in the clearing surrounded by nine more donning dark masks. The two men glared defiantly at their attackers. Then one of them, a man with blond hair and a jagged looking scar on his forehead, lurched to punch at one of the attackers, only to be struck in the gut by the attacker's fist. He dropped to his knees, clutching his gut while the rest of the attackers tensed, gearing up to join the attack.

They didn't get a chance.

" **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist**!"

Natsu launched towards the fight, fists blazing with bright orange flames and dazzling ruby red scales emerging on the surface of his skin. He attacked with such speed that the enemy Natsu was going for didn't have time to react before he was sent flying into the thickets by Natsu's fist.

Lucy wasn't far behind with a key in hand.

" **Open! Gate of the Golden Bull: Taurus!** "

Smoke erupted next to her, magic cracking as the spirit materialized with his great axe in hand. In the split second between Lucy summoning him and his appearance, Taurus took two more enemies by surprise and sent them flying as well.

"Moo-st excellent!" he quipped, "I've been itching for a fight Mooo-s Lucy!"

Not willing to sit the fight out, Lucy lashed her whip at the frey, the glowing magic weapon wrapping around one attacker's waist and crashing into his ally a blink later at a flick of Lucy's wrist.

Lucy glanced back at Natsu and as she expected he was going to town on the remaining four with his bare hands. No flames or spells, just brute strength and in the time it took Lucy and Taurus to dispatch four assailants, Natsu already took out three more. The final one was coming up behind Natsu until Lucy struck him with her whip, sending him off to join his companions.

The fight overall, was over in about four seconds. Much to Natsu's disappointment.

"Aw man! First actual fight in ages and they turn out to be total wusses!" he complained.

Taurus nodded in agreement just before disappearing back to the Spirit World.

"Well at least no one's badly hurt," Lucy pointed out, turning to the man who was still on the ground.

She bent down to him and extended a hand.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked.

He nodded and took her hand. As soon as his skin made contact with her's however, Lucy felt a sudden shock of electricity shoot up her arm. It almost made her release his hand immediately, but it felt more like a static shock than anything.

The man looked up at her and flashed an embarrassed smile.

"Yeah, I'm good," he assured, standing up and releasing Lucy's hand, "Hey. Thanks for the help back there. Not sure what would have happened if you two hadn't come along."

The man next to him nodded but the girl stayed silent.

"My name's Jason by the way," the man continued. He gestured to the other man next to him, "This is Alkali, he's my partner."

As Jason said his name, Alkali nodded. He was pretty tall, having an inch or two over Jason was pale white hair shaved in an undercut and a guarded expression, almost opposite to Jason's wild head of blond hair and expressive nature.

"Nice ta meet you all, but what are you doing out here? It's dangerous you know," Natsu scolded, a slight scowl creasing his brow.

Jason chuckled sheepishly. "Yeah, we intended to stay on the path, but those masked guys jumped us and forced us off the path."

Natsu nodded in understanding. "'Kay. Well now that those guys ain't attacking you anymore, we should go Luce."

"Wait!" Jason suddenly shouted, "Um...Geez. This is a bit embarrassing, but could you two come with us? We're on a mission for a client to find an artifact and we've got intel from some locals from that area that it's guarded by some pretty powerful beasts and we're not the best at fighting."

The half-Celestial looked at the man with renewed interest. "What's the artifact?"

It was Alkali who spoke up. "The Natus Stellarum."

Lucy's heart skipped a beat.

"...What?" she asked slowly, "But that's just a children's tale. It doesn't actually exist."

"Not according to our client," Jason explained, "He actually found the place that the Natus Stellarum is located, but because it's so heavily guarded, can't get it himself," he sighed, briefly pausing, "Look. Could you just come and help us? We'll even cut you both in on the reward, but we really need help on this and we can't quit the job or we'll dishonor our guild's name!"

"That sucks for you guys, but no thanks," Natsu deadpanned, "We've got places to be."

 _Wow, that's surprisingly cold_. Lucy thought.

Jason looked to be getting increasingly frustrated and Lucy couldn't help but sympathize. Natsu _could_ be a bit of a pig-headed brute sometimes and she meant that in the most friendly way because it's Natsu after all. But these people needed their help and it was something small. They could help them really quick and get some money out of it in the process.

"Hey Natsu, why don't we help them? It'll be a quick gig and we'll get back on track to finding your wings afterwards," Lucy promised.

The half-Fire Dragon crossed his arms. "We keep sayin' that but we keep getting side tracked! At this rate, we won't get anywhere!"

"You're a half-dragon, right?" Alkali inquired, nudging into the conversation.

Natsu looked at him, his brow creasing sourly. "Yeah, what's it to y'ah?"

"There _are_ legends of a dragon guarding the Natus Stellarum, so maybe it could you find your wings," he offered.

Interest sparked in Natsu's eyes. "Alright then, let's go find this thing!"

…

"The cave where the Natus Stellarum is hidden in is about 100 miles east of here. We should reach it by sunset tomorrow," Jason explained.

"Great! I'm getting fired up!" Natsu grinned, small flames flaring around his fists, "I gotta few questions to ask this dragon."

Lucy looked towards Alkali, who had fallen in step with her while Natsu and Jason lead.

"So...are you sure that the Natus Stellarum is...you know...real?" Lucy asked.

Alkali looked over at her and shrugged. "Not really any concrete evidence to go by," he said.

"Then why did you take this job?"

He shrugged again. "It pays good and that's enough for us."

Lucy quieted. Alkali's response didn't surprise her much. But she was a bit disappointed that their reason for taking this job was...so shallow.

"We _do_ know that the monsters are real enough. Even if this artifact isn't real, there's bound to be something of value in those caves," Alkali continued.

After that the conversation kind of died off. Natsu and Jason weren't exactly chatting it up ahead of them either and the silence wasn't sitting well with Lucy.

"So you and Jason are mages?" she asked, trying to strike up another conversation.

Alkali nodded and pulled out a fountain pen from the inner pocket of his jacket. "I use Symbol magic."

"Symbol magic? I've never heard of it," Lucy admitted.

"It's a Holder Type," he explained. Alkali then nodded towards her keys, "It's like those keys you have. By the way, what magic is that? It looks like Celestial Spirit Magic."

Lucy patted her keys proudly. "That's because it is. My mother was a Celestial Goddess."

Alkali paused for a breath then nodded in acknowledgment before he spoke again.

"So tell me about your friend."

…

Natsu's POV

…

The sun quickly fell behind the horizon before Natsu knew it. They had chosen to set up camp in a small clearing surrounded by ancient oak trees. The night was temperate thankfully and the moon was bright against the blackness of the sky, but not as bright as the fire Natsu sat in front of. However, Natsu's attention wasn't on the fire. Instead, he focused on one of the strangers he and Lucy saved earlier. His name was Jacob, right?

Well, whatever his name was, Natsu didn't like him a bit.

What's-his-face was chatting it up with Lucy and whatever they were saying was _just_ out of his hearing range. Maybe it was because of the crackling fire, but it was still aggravating and Natsu was tempted to move closer so he could eavesdrop.

It was surprising how Natsu hadn't simply broken them up, but his leg was bouncing with the pent up energy he would have used in such an action. Natsu didn't trust this guy. Something seemed off about him in a way that Natsu couldn't put his finger on.

Lucy suddenly burst out laughing.

Okay, that was it.

Natsu got up and in five strides, he reached Lucy and the other dude and firmly sat himself between them without a word. They had stopped talking since Natsu had interrupted them.

"Uh Natsu, that was a little rude," Lucy pointed out.

He just grunted. Great, metal-head's habits rubbed off on him already.

It was clear, even to Natsu, that Lucy was slightly irked by Natsu's action, but it passed rather fast.

"Get lonely sulking by the fire?" she joked.

"Yeah!" Natsu exclaimed, "You ditched me and that other guy is...somewhere."

"You must have been so miserable," the other guy drawled, sarcasm obvious in his voice.

Natsu scowled at him.

"Jason, that was rude," Lucy scolded.

Jason! That's his name!

Jason gave an embarrassed chuckle, muttered a barely audible apology before awkward silence settled over the group. Natsu fought the urge to shift uncomfortably because he was _not_ going to show any weakness around this guy. But the air seemed _charged_ in a way that made his spine crawl.

"Well, this got awkward fast," Lucy sighed, leaning up against the tree behind her.

"Sure did," Natsu mumbled.

His eyes flickered to Jason. The mage hadn't seemed to have broken eye contact with Natsu since he interrupted his conversation with Lucy. What a weirdo. And not like Lucy weird, but just _weird_. Natsu was starting to doubt they could trust these guys.

"So where exactly were you two heading before you ran into Alkali and I?" Jason asked, finally breaking eye contact with Natsu.

Lucy shrugged, a bright, musing smile on her face. "We kind of wander. Natsu's trying to find his soulmate so he can get his wings and I'm helping him."

"Wings huh? Isn't that an angel thing?" Jason inquired.

Lucy laughed. "That's what I said too!"

"Well," Natsu interrupted, "To be honest, I'm not 100% sure I still _want_ to get my wings."

Lucy stopped laughing. "Huh? What do you mean?"

Natsu fimbled with the fringed edges of his scarf. "What I mean is I like roamin' around with you Lucy. Sure, I did it all the time before we met, but it's more fun when we're together."

The half-Celestial smiled softly and wrapped her soft hand over his calloused one. "Yeah. It is. Isn't it?"

…

 **A/N: Wow, I haven't written a fight scene in a long time. I'm out of practice. I'm kind of excited to see how this pans out mostly because I know you all are going to be screaming at me in the reviews :)**

 **Hehe. I have plans for once (jk, I always have a plan. Well, it's a half plan really, but it's still a plan).**

 **Just a reminder that I might not update for a while because I'm gonna be a bit busy for a while. So if there's another two month long radio silence, neither I nor this story are dead, I'm just busy.**

 **Thank you for your patience.**

 **Valette until then.**


	44. Chapter 44

**A/N: Salvette! Opps. I said I'd try to get it done by May. It's July now. Whoops. Did you all know that this story has over 70,000 views? That's four zeros. It baffles and pleases me to no end that this story gets as much attention as it does (I actually was not anticipating for it to be this popular) so thank you all for sticking with me through this story and even if you haven't been with me the whole way, thank you for taking time to read this story :)**

 **And for those of you who are impatient pricks who don't bother taking my wishes as a fellow human being into account when you callously try to rush me:** **F*ck you and I hope you step on a Lego. As of now, I will not even acknowledge your comments if it's just a demand for an update or just plain rude because apparently there's no reasoning with some of you. So I just won't grace you with my precious time.**

 **Fun fact: This arc is going to be ridiculously short in comparison to the other arcs I've written *cough*Tartarus/Blood Eagle*cough*, but we are hitting the climax of this arc** _ **right here and now**_ **so hold onto your seats folks, it's about to go** _ **DOWN**_ **.**

 **Reviews** **:**

 **peacerockgirl123** **: Unfortunately yes. All stories have a beginning, middle, and an END. I'm planning on going back and editing this story though, so I'll likely post a revised version sometime in the future that will be noticeably different than this one. And mayyybbbbeeee there could be a sequel in our future ;)**

 **sarara1.8** **: Ahhh yes. Slow burn. The only type of romantic relationships I live for.**

 **NaLuhasNashi** **: Ahhh you picked up on that! Lucy** _ **is**_ **being surprisingly friendly with these strangers. Hmm. I wonder why? ;)**

 **ThayetJade** **: Well, all stories are based in some truth (to varying degrees of course). Though, there might be a few details missing from the story Lucy knows. Lucy's book is basically the Disney version of a Grimm Brother's fairy tale ;)**

 **PhantomSeekerz255** **: *silent happy screeching* Thank you!**

 **SSTrans** **: Well, honestly I couldn't think of how else you'd find your soulmate. His thinking behind that is if they're his soulmate, he's fated to meet them. Plus, he just likes traveling with Lucy with no set plan. *whispers* He isn't good at planning anyway. Also thank you :)**

 **Sydneste** **: Lol I didn't think of the reporter! Fun fact, Jason's name was supposed to by "Tyram" but I hated it, so I chose "Jason" instead without thinking XD And thank you for baring with me all this time. I really appreciate it.**

 **Kaggy-Higg88** **: HAHAHAHA That's what I like to hear. Trust me, you're gonna be yelling at me A LOT more after these next few chapters (feel free to shout at me and call me the devil from the comments btw). Natsu does want to knock off Jason's head, but he's trying to be civil. Who says they're up to anything? They could just be harmless guild mages (or not. Who knows? I do. That's who.) Have you noticed that we don't know what Jason's magic is? Or what guild they're from? *wiggles eyebrows suggestively***

 **Mezaton** **:** _ **SOON**_ **. (for real. Like, in the next couple chapters actually)**

 **Guest** **: That's really sweet. I don't really know what an amino is and I don't really intend on expanding my online platforms anytime soon.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Natsu's POV:

…

When the sun rose the next morning, they packed up camp and continued towards their destination, a mountain on the other side of the far end of the forest. Jason had stated over breakfast that it was also the location that the client said the thing they were looking for had been buried. But it was really far from Hajimari, like a good hundred-fifty miles south, maybe more. So it was a long walk.

They had fallen into a walking order, though this time, Natsu had fallen in step with that Jason guy's friend, Alkali. Jason was leading the way and Lucy had fallen in step with him and were chatting passionately about the book she had been writing. Natsu couldn't help but try to burn holes in Jason's back with his eyes, but the guy never turned around. Or burst into flames as Natsu had hoped.

"I'm getting you aren't a fan of Jason's," Alkali noted.

Natsu scoffed and looked up at the clouds.

Alkali sighed. "Something you wanna talk about or…? It's kinda awkward just walking in silence."

He clenched and unclenched his fists and scowled. "What's that guy playin' at?"

"What do you mean? Playing at what?"

"Lucy! Something's off about her," he grumbled.

"Really?" Alkali asked dryly, "Are you sure you're just not jealous that she's paying attention to another man?"

His head swung around so fast he heard it crack. "I'm not jealous!"

"You sure?" Alkali questioned, still maintaining that annoying composure, "Because half-dragons are prone to be possessive. Or so I've heard."

That made Natsu pause. The possessive rumor _was_ true. Half-Dragons couldn't help but be possessive of things that are valuable to them because that's how _dragons are_. There were stories of dragons having massive hoards of valuable goods for a reason.

But was Natsu just being paranoid? Jealous, even? No that _can't_ be it. It isn't the fact that Lucy's paying attention to Jason that's pissing him off seven ways to sundown. It's something else completely, but he doesn't know _what_. But yeah, maybe he _is_ being a little possessive. But that's because he cares about Lucy. She's his best friend after all, why wouldn't he want to protect her?

"How do you even know this thing you're looking for's even real?" Natsu barked, changing the subject.

"Lucy asked me the same thing yesterday," Alkali noted, "Truth is, we don't."

"Then why are we doing this?"

"Because our client asked us to and Jason and I are cutting you and Lucy in on any reward we get. Sounds fair, right?"

Natsu scoffed and looked away, ending the conversation. Instead, he continued to try to telekinetically burn holes in Jason's back.

…

A few hours later

…

The sun was starting to bow towards the horizon by the time the mountain came into sight, turning the sky's molten shades of orange and yellow and making the mountain almost glow with an ethereal light.

They had made good time and were able to make it to the mountain before sundown, but the whole group was tired from the hike through the forest. And they hadn't even reached the mountain base yet.

Even Natsu was willing to admit he was exhausted.

So they made camp again and for a second time, Natsu made a point to stick by Lucy's side. Though Jason wasn't at camp at the moment. He said he was going out to gather firewood. Lucy had volunteered to hunt for fish in the nearby river while Alkali watched over the camp. Natsu insisted he went with her and she agreed.

The night air was crisp and cool, carrying the scent of distant blooming trees and pine. Crickets had began to chirp in the brush and fireflies flickered in and out of sight in the woods across the river.

"It sure is a nice night," Lucy committed, a soft smile on her face.

She paused and looked up at the stars from where she sat at the river's edge to take off her shoes. Her smile faltered for a moment.

"I can see Aquarius's constellation,"

Natsu frowned and sat next to her, wrapping an arm over her shoulders and pulling her into a side hug.

"We'll find a way to fix her key Luce," he reassured.

Lucy hummed, wrapping her arms around his waist, returning the hug. "I know,"

They stayed like that for a while, just enjoying each other's company like they always have while watching the twinkling of the stars.

Funny. Natsu has seen this view a thousand times over his lifetime. But it was indescribably...pleasant to have someone to share it with.

Unfortunately, the moment couldn't last forever and they had to get up to catch fish. Lucy found a couple of pointed sticks to use to catch fish with.

She offered on to Natsu. "Here, you can use this."

Natsu smirked. "Nah, I got this."

The half-Fire Dragon waded into the stream, which was only halfway up to his ankles, and stood still and watched the water. It wasn't long until he saw dark, slim shapes swimming past him. Curling his fingers in preparation, he tensed and held his breath. Then suddenly, quick as a lightning strike, Natsu plunged his hands into the water, grasping the torso of the fish.

"HA!" he exclaimed, pulling his prize out of the water.

It was a nice sized fish, big enough that Natsu's hands didn't _quite_ go completely around it. The fish's tail flapped frantically in the open air as Natsu held it up, making its silvery-blue scales shimmer in the moonlight.

"Alright! Nice catch Natsu!" Lucy complemented from the shore.

He grinned widely and tossed the fish onto the grass, where Lucy then picked it up and put it in the wicker basket they brought with them. Natsu turned back to the water, ready to catch another fish, eyeing the moving shapes eagerly.

Suddenly, there was a splash and a shout of triumph.

"I caught one!" Lucy exclaimed, excitedly.

Natsu looked over his shoulder. Lucy was holding up her make-shift spear, another silvery-blue fish squired on it.

He grinned. "Nice job Luce!"

It continued like this until they filled the basket. Both of them alternating in catching a fish and complementing each other on their catch before getting one of their own. The experience was nice. No tension or stress as there had been the past few weeks with the Tartarus incident and even before that with Blood Eagle and the Oracion Seis. Just the two of them catching fish and laughing as it occasionally slapped one of them with its slimy tail. It was a nice change of pace.

They probably caught more than they needed, but Natsu didn't care and he didn't think Lucy did either. Both of them had fun together and that was all that mattered. To Natsu at least.

"We're back!" Natsu exclaimed, holding up his end of the basket he and Lucy had been sharing between them, "And we brought fish!"

Alkali and Jason were sitting on the ground in front of the fire, a large pile of wood next to Jason. They turned around and Jason grinned.

"Nice work you two," he complemented, "We'll be eating like royalty tonight!"

Lucy and Natsu set the basket down and Alkali reached in and pulled out a fish, holding it by its tail. From a pocket in his jacket, he produced a knife and started cutting the fish open.

"What are you doing?" Natsu asked, confused.

"He's gutting the fish," Jason explained for him.

Natsu raised an eyebrow. "Why? It tastes just fine with the guts."

"Hold up," Lucy said, "You eat the fish, guts, scales, and all?"

Natsu shrugged, picking out a fish of his own. "The scales usually fall off when I cook them, but yeah. Why? Don't you?"

Lucy's face scrunched up in disgust. "Gross!"

"Yeah Natsu, that's kind of nasty," Jason agreed.

The half-Fire Dragon scowled at Jason, lit his finger on fire, and started blow torching his fish. Scales soon started popping off and rained down on the ground.

There was a few minutes of silence over the small camp save for the crackling of the fire, the squashing of fish guts, and the sharp pop of scales cracking under the heat of Natsu's flames and falling in a rain of silver.

This eventually evaporated as Lucy and Jason started striking up conversation to fill the awkward silence. Natsu wanted to join in, but he couldn't keep up with the topics. They seemed to change every few minutes and even when they stayed the same for longer, Natsu couldn't get a word in edgewise. So he listened.

They were talking about the Natus Stellarum. Natsu still didn't really know what that was, but from what he was getting from the conversation, it was some kind of powerful Celestial artifact that did...something. They hadn't talked about that. Right now they were discussing the legends surrounding it and what it probably looks like.

Lucy says that she thinks it's this grand spire-like construct carved out of pure Celestite, a kind of Celestial crystal. Jason says it looks like a sculpture of gold, twisted into the likeness of a swirling nebula.

Alkali had left somewhere during the conversation to do who knows what and Natsu was half tempted to join him. As much as he loved to hear Lucy passionately chatter about a topic that she's so interested in, he didn't care much for hearing Jason's voice.

It just ground his gears, so to speak. Like listening to someone drag their nails over glass. So he was grateful when Lucy finally decided to leave the conversation under the excuse that she was tired, and Jason agreed.

The group turned in for the night and retreated to their respective tents. Alkali and Jason in one and Natsu and Lucy in the other on the far side of the camp sight.

Even in her mildly groggy state of mind, Lucy still seemed to buzz with excitement. Natsu eventually got curious.

"What's got you so excited?" Natsu asked, whispering.

Lucy smiled, both tired and excited. "We're going to reach the mountain tomorrow."

"That soon?"

Lucy nodded. "Yeah, we made good time today, so it isn't much farther. I know we're going to have to fight demons once we get there, but I'm excited anyway."

"Is this thing that important to you?" he asked.

"Sort of? I mean, I've been told stories about this artifact since I was little," Lucy explained, her gaze distant as she stared at the tent's ceiling, "Seeing it in person is a cool thought."

The conversation died off from there and Natsu drifted off to sleep.

...

When camp was broken in the morning and the hike resumed, conversation was absent this time. Alkali wasn't one for conversation despite starting a few in the days before, Jason and Lucy had seemed to run out of conversation topics, and Natsu didn't want to talk to either Jason or Alkali and the idea of chatting with Lucy while either of them were in earshot displeased him.

Gods above, he wanted this to be over.

Why were they doing this again?

Oh yeah. Lucy wanted to see if the Natus Stellarum is real and Jason said there was a dragon that could give him a hint on who his soulmate was.

Natsu was more than a little dubious of Jason's word though. This guy seemed shifty. He said he and Alkali were from a guild, but neither have mentioned the guild's name and he hasn't seen an emblem on either of them. And Natsu simply didn't trust the look in his eye, but if Lucy trusted him, he could give Jason the benefit of the doubt.

The trek was uneventful. Not even the Forest Vulcans, which were prevalent in this area, bothered them. In fact, _nothing_ bothered them. After a while, even the birds stopped singing.

"We're here," Alkali announced when they finally reached the base of the mountain.

The mountain was...well...a mountain. So it was really tall and rocky. It looked a lot like a massive pile of rock chunks than an actual mountain to Natsu, but even he couldn't deny that there was a strange and familiar energy about the place, though the traces were faint.

"What now?" Natsu asked.

He turned to Lucy.

"Got any ideas?"

The half-Celestial stared at the mountain, eyes glazed over. After a moment, Lucy's eyes refocused and she pointed up the rock face.

"There," she declared confidently, "We can start looking there."

Jason grinned, satisfied, "Excellent. Let's go."

Lucy took the lead and Natsu followed close behind her. As she climbed across the rocky incline of the mountain face, Lucy kept laser focus on the area she pointed at. Getting closer, Natsu could see she was pointing to a cave that was almost completely concealed by the rock.

"Wow Lucy, how'd you see that?" Natsu inquired.

"It's glowing, isn't it?" the half-Celestial replied, "I guess I'm the only one who can see it, huh?"

Jason pulled up next to Natsu and spoke. "You're sensitive to the presence of Celestial Magic in a way that the rest of us aren't," he explained.

Lucy laughed dryly. "Part of being half-Celestial I guess. It's not much further."

The cave entrance was narrow, forcing them to enter one at a time. It was dark and cramped and the tunnel didn't widen any for a long time. Natsu lit a flame above his fist to light their way, which helped only until they made it into the larger tunnel.

The tunnel they entered looked to be carved out of a pure white crystal. Spires of these crystals grew out of the walls in large clusters, glowing from within with a soft gold light that made the crystal glitter. It actually was more of a hallway than a tunnel, the ceiling stretching so far upwards that Natsu couldn't clearly see the top through the glare of the glowing crystals.

Lucy reached up and touched the crystal. "Celestite. I've read about it, but I didn't realize it was so beautiful."

Natsu grinned widely. "It's so sparkly!"

They continued into the tunnel, Lucy taking the lead and Natsu not far behind. Jason and Alkali hung back a bit, but were otherwise quiet. Lucy was completely mesmerized by the beauty of the tunnel. Natsu on the other hand, was already over that and focused on his surroundings. Something felt off.

He glanced back at Jason and Alkali, who haven't said a word since they entered. There was something in their eyes that made Natsu's stomach twist uncomfortably.

Natsu picked up his pace and caught up with Lucy. He tugged on her arm lightly.

"Lucy, I don't trust these guys," he whispered to her, glancing wearily back at Jason and Alkali, "We should book it while we still can."

Lucy's brow creased for a moment, silently contemplating. Then that suddenly lifted. She giggled.

"You're being paranoid Natsu," she assured, "Jason and Alkali are totally trustworthy."

Natsu scowled. "What makes you so sure Lucy? There's something shady about those two."

She giggled again. "Natsu, I know you don't necessarily trust new people, but there's nothing to worry about. It's in your head."

This really didn't feel right. Lucy wasn't even acknowledging his suspicions. Lucy _never_ disregards someone else's feelings, _ever_. She looks at all sides of the argument before deciding her stance.

But before Natsu could retort again, something from above caught his eye.

Reflexively, Natsu tackled Lucy to the side, the both of them crashing into the space between a Celestite cluster. An explosion and a flash of light came from behind Natsu, peppering his back with small pebbles of Celestite.

"They're here!" Jason exclaimed.

Lucy squirmed past Natsu, already armed with a key. " **Open! Gate of the Lion: Loke**!"

Out of a flash of light, Loke came charging, ready to fight.

Natsu jumped out from behind the cluster into the fight as well, both fists ignited and his scales surfacing and covering his skin like armor.

But there weren't any enemies. At least at first glance.

"Look out Natsu!" Loke shouted, pushing him out of the way of another blast.

The attack came from above and when Natsu looked up, he saw twenty or so pairs of glowing yellow eyes glaring down at him.

"There's so many of them," Alkali noted, gripping a fountain pen.

Natsu clenched his fists tighter. "We can take them! Right Lucy?"

Lucy nodded. "Especially if I use **Stardress**."

The half-Celestial clutched Loke's key to her chest and it began to glow brightly, casting the area in a warm light.

" **Stardress: Leo Form**!"

This seemed to infuriate the demons, who began hissing and clicking at them in voices that sounded like weathered chimes. Then they charged more attacks.

Natsu inhaled, drawing on his magic. " **Fire Dragon's Roar**!"

A destructive funnel of orange flames blasted from Natsu's mouth at the demons above them. Seven of them stopped charging their attacks and screeched as the fire hit them, leaving them badly burned and dazed. The other thirteen, however, attacked.

" **Regulus Impact**!" Loke and Lucy shouted together.

Punching forward, both Lucy, now in **Stardress** , and Loke's fists emitted a powerful blast of radiant light that nullified the in coming attacks and even carried on to the enemies above. Three enemies vanished in a shower of blue sparks.

Three of the demons screeched again and leapt from their perches on the Celestite clusters, where Natsu could fully see them. They were amorphous masses of inky darkness and swirling purple energy covered in small points of light reminiscent of stars. And they looked pissed.

Lucy and Loke leapt up and struck two of them with another **Regulus Impact** while Natsu punched the final one with a **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist**. The ones Lucy and Loke attacked disappeared instantly in a shower of blue sparks, but the one that Natsu hit was burned by the attack but was still there.

It glared at him and barked at him. Talking, but in a language Natsu couldn't understand.

He didn't have much time to think about it deeply as it leapt at him again, screeching like a banshee.

" **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist**!"

Natsu punched it straight in the gut, and this time it exploded in a shower of blue sparks.

"It seems these demons are resistant to Dragon magic," Alkali noted, still holding his pen.

Natsu growled. "No duh man!"

As he said that, another demon pounced at him, but he hit it with a hard kick and sent it flying into the wall. A decent sized cluster of Celestite broke off from above it and fell on the demon, crushing it into blue sparks.

"Alkali, could you lend them a hand then?" Jason requested, smirking a little.

Alkali nodded and the tip of his pen began glowing red as another pair of demons prepared to attack.

Alkali quickly slashed his pen strategically through the air. " **Symbols Magic: Mirror**."

As commanded, a large mirror appeared between Alkali and the in coming attacks. The golden energy struck the surface and bounced off it, reflecting right back at its casters. The demons shrieked in surprise as their own power was turned back at them before they turned to sparks.

Above them, the demons chattered amongst themselves, sounding like a bunch of chimes in a hurricane. Seven of them leapt to lower perches, cloaked in a radiant yellow glow and muttering something in chorus.

"It's a spell!" Loke exclaimed, "Take cover!"

The air suddenly became electric as the glow expanded from the demons and enveloped the whole area. The light was almost blinding, but Natsu could just barely make out a massive magic seal spinning between the demons centered over them.

Heading Loke's warning, Natsu dove behind a Celestite cluster just as the spell set off, raining a massive blast of pure magic on top of them. Even hidden in the cluster and covered in thick dragon scales, Natsu _felt_ it. It felt like his insides were boiling as the magic blasted through the Celestite around him and consumed him. He suspected this is what it felt like to be burned. But it lasted for what felt like an eternity. Even when the spell dissipated, his body felt raw and too warm.

Natsu couldn't move for a while. He was frozen in the indent he laid in. His vision was spotty from how bright the spell was, but he could see the remaining demons pick their way down from the ceiling warily.

Gradually, Natsu began to recover his strength and dragged himself up. He felt blood drip down his side, a deep wound burning in his side. But he got up anyway.

The demons noticed. One of them screaming a warning to its companions. Six immediately pounced at him, fast as lightning. And faster than Natsu could react.

But a flash of neon blue cut between Natsu and the demons and swept them violently away. Standing tall and unscathed by the previous blast, was Lucy, whip in hand and looking ready to fight.

"You okay Natsu?" she asked, concerned.

Natsu grinned widely. "Yeah. I'm just getting fired up!"

Lucy smiled back, defiance in her eyes as she pulled out another key. "Those demons up there are getting annoying. Good thing I know an expert marksman! **Open! Gate of the Archer: Sagittarius**!"

The centaur spirit appeared besides Lucy, bow already notched with three arrows and aimed at the remaining five demons above, who looked down at them with wide eyes.

" _Yokai? Sumus non yokai,_ " one demon hissed to another.

Before the demons could say anything more, all five were pierced by Sagittarius's arrows and exploded into blue sparks.

Sagittarius saluted Lucy and then disappeared along with Loke, who winked at Lucy before leaving.

"Yikes," Lucy huffed, her **Stardress** disappearing as well, "That was tough. Is it going to be like this the whole way?"

"Probably," Jason confirmed, "These demons have claimed the Natus Stellarum for themselves and will defend it tooth and nail."

Lucy's brow furrowed for a moment, but she said nothing more.

Suddenly there was a deep rumbling that rocked the tunnel.

"What's happening now?" Natsu demanded.

He got his answer as a spire of Celestite punched through the floor, narrowly missing his foot. Similar spires, now forming clusters, were rapidly growing out of the walls around them either attempting to trap them or impale them.

"Move!" Alkali ordered.

The group sprinted deeper into the mountain at full speed as the clusters of Celestite closed off their point of entrance.

…

Once the Celestite spires stopped pursuing them, they stopped to rest in an intersection. It was a hub where the tunnels branched off in many directions. Natsu could faintly hear noises down some of them, but nothing threatening or close enough to cause concern. Yet anyway.

For now, however, he'll worry about the wound in his side. Glancing at it, it didn't look too bad, but now that he was out of eminent danger, Natsu could see just how bad it was. Even with his supernatural healing speed, the bleeding hadn't stopped. His entire right side was now covered in sticky red blood. His pants weren't even safe from staining.

Lucy looked at him with great concern for a long time before finally speaking up.

"Natsu, are you okay?" she asked, "That wound looks bad."

He grinned against the pain that shot up his side now that the adrenaline had faded. "This? Ha! It's nothing!" he assured her, "I'll be fine."

"You sure?" Lucy questioned, "That's a lot of blood."

At this point Alkali jumped in. The Symbols mage held out a roll of bandages.

"Here," he said, "Fix yourself up."

Natsu took the bandages and began unwinding them. "Thanks man."

Alkali then turned to Lucy. "Are you okay Lucy? That was quite a nasty fight."

"Oh I'm fine," Lucy replied, "A little tired, but I'm not hurt."

Alkali nodded, relieved. "Good. I'm sorry I couldn't help more, but my magic is only so useful in battle."

"No no Alkali. You did just fine." she reassured.

"Yeah," Natsu said, still looking down as he wound the bandages around his waist, "Jason was the useless one."

"Hey Natsu! That's rude," Lucy scowled.

Natsu scoffed. "What? It's true!"

"Yeah, Natsu's right," Jason sighed, sheepishly, "I'm pretty useless in a fight."

Natsu smoothed the bandages with his hand and glanced at Jason. "What even _is_ your magic anyway? You're both part of a wizard guild, right?"

Jason's lip curled upwards and his eyes shifted back and forth between Lucy and Alkali. And then a primal screech echoed through the cave. To Natsu, the cry was deafening, but it seemed to hurt the others too, as they clapped their hands over their own ears until the sound stopped.

"We need to go," Alkali ordered, "Now!"

Natsu sprang to his feet, grabbed Lucy's wrist and pulled her to her feet. Jason and Alkali got up quickly too, but they looked as lost as to where to go as Natsu felt. Suddenly, Lucy pulled Natsu towards a tunnel that had a deep downward slope.

"This way!" she exclaimed.

Natsu was pulled after her and Jason and Alkali followed after them. As soon as Natsu's feet hit the tunnel, it felt like he was making his way down a hill made of gravel. Eventually, all of them were practically sliding down the tunnel. Behind them, another shrek tore through the air behind them, closer this time.

"Where are we going Lucy?" Jason questioned, over the noise.

"There's an energy this way." Lucy explained, "It's the same energy I felt when we found this place!"

"That must be the thing!" Natsu shouted excitedly.

Jason whooped. "Great job, Lucy!"

Suddenly, a bolt of crackling energy whizzed past Natsu's head and struck the wall next to him.

"It's the demons again!" Alkali announced.

They picked up the pace, Lucy leading them through twisting tunnels that seemed to get steeper as they went while the demons screeched and threw attacks at them from behind. Natsu soon began to fear he'd lose his footing, but he was struck in the back with one of the demon's magic attacks.

It felt like he was being microwaved from the inside and his organs were boiling.

He stumbled and fell down, rolling down the steep incline. As he went, he ended up crashing into Lucy and taking her with him. Luckily, it wasn't a very long tumble and the ground evened out beneath him. They continued rolling for a ways before crashing into the wall in between a cluster of Celestite.

Jason and Alkali slid out of the tunnel soon after, but stopped, mouths gaping. Looking to his right, Natsu saw a large construct about 50 yards away made of spires of glittering Celestite encircled elegantly sculpted rings of gold that even from this distance looked almost liquid. Six spires of Celestite orbited a larger crystal, all seven suspended in a halo of celestial light at the center of three interlocking rings of gold inscribed with ancient runes. The construct itself was suspended between two more thick pillars of Celestite as thick as redwood trunks, one extending from the ceiling and the other growing out of the floor.

"It's...the Natus Stellarum," Lucy murmured, completely entranced by the celestial object before them.

"Wow," Natsu whistled, "It really does exist."

A screech from down the tunnel they came out of reminded Natsu of the danger they were in. He turned his head just in time to see five more demons emerge from the tunnel, gold eyes burning with fury.

"We've got company!" Natsu exclaimed, his scales surfacing over his skin as he got to his feet.

Lucy got up as well, looking ready to fight. Alkali and Jason both retreated over to where Lucy and Natsu were standing in an attempt to distance themselves from the angry spirits.

However, more demons emerged from other tunnels, looking just as angry as the rest. Before Natsu or the others knew it, they were surrounded.

" _Non noscitis. Est periculosus huc,"_ one demon growled.

"What…?" Natsu mumbled, "What are they saying?"

He looked to Lucy. The half-Celestial only stared at the demons with wide eyes as if she understood what they were saying and their words bore important information.

"What are you waiting for?!" Jason shouted, "Attack them! They're demons that will kill us!"

The surprised look melted from Lucy's face and her fists tightened into balls for a moment then she extended them.

" _ **Survey the Heavens. Open the Heavens. All the stars, far and wide, show me thy brilliance. Oh Tetrabiblos, I am the ruler of the stars. Aspect become complete. Open thy malevolent gate. Oh 88 stars of the Heaven, SHINE!**_ "

Lucy clapped her hands together in front of her and a massive wave of golden magical energy tore from them and through the ranks of demons before them. Even Natsu, Jason, and Alkali were pushed back against the walls by the sheer force generated by the spell.

The demons shrieked as they disappeared into nothingness. At least half of the initial sixty were destroyed by Lucy's spell. The remaining demons charged them.

Natsu didn't waste a second and charged forward as well, gathering magic in his gut.

" **Fire Dragon's Roar**!"

A funnel of fire burned through a row of demons, throwing them back while the rest charged.

A group of five demons attacked Natsu, their claws glowing with golden energy. They swept at him, three of them connecting, their claws piercing through his scales, while Natsu managed to dodge the last two. The resulting wounds seethed painfully on his skin.

Despite the pain, Natsu summoned flames around his forearms. " **Fire Dragon's Wing Attack**!"

The five demons disappeared in a wash of draconic flames with a chorus of shrieks.

Natsu glanced around at his surroundings. In the time that he had been fighting, Lucy had already engaged with seven other demons with Taurus and Capricorn by her side and her whip in her hand. Alkali was also fighting, but he was using a sword of glowing purple light to slash away at any demons that got close enough while Jason cowered behind him.

However, Natsu didn't stay out of the fight himself for long as six more demons leapt at him, orbs of gold energy in their hands.

" **Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame**!" he shouted, thrusting both his hands before him.

The demons scattered in all directions but didn't disappear. Natsu leapt for the closest one, fist ablaze. He punched it before it even had the chance to get up again, his fist puncturing straight through its chest before it disappeared.

The other five, however, came at him again.

Natsu sidestepped one and hooked it with his foot and flung it into another demon with a fiery kick. Those two demons disappeared. The other three continued at him.

One fired a beam of gold energy at him, which hit his left shoulder. The strike burned, but he didn't slow down and punched that demon as well, making it disappear. Natsu tried to use his left arm, but found that it had gone limp at his side, completely numb.

The second demon summoned a whip of golden energy, similar in appearance to Lucy's and lashed it at him. Natsu jumped to avoid it, but it still caught his ankle. The demon then pulled that foot out from under him as the third demon swooped in, presumably for the kill.

As Natsu fell, he roared, catching the two demons and destroying them. When he hit the ground, the whip around his ankle disappeared with them and he got up again. His left arm was tingling a bit, but thankfully he was starting to get feeling back in it.

By now, there were only eight demons left in the room. They were much bigger than the other ones, but Lucy was staring them down without visible fear, looking a bit disheveled with a few wounds on her, but still full of energy. Alkali was still guarding Jason in the corner, well out of the fight.

Natsu ran over to Lucy and stood next to her as they stared down the demons in front of them.

"Ready Lucy?" Natsu grinned.

Lucy smiled back, determination glittering in her eyes. "Ready."

The half-Celestial grasped one of her keys, which lit up with a bright magical glow. " **Open! Gate of the Giant Crab: Cancer**! And **Stardress: Cancer Form**!"

Cancer appeared and Lucy's appearance once again changed to a form reminiscent of Cancer's. In her hands appeared two scissor-like swords and in a flash, she was leaping at the demons.

Natsu followed close behind.

The demons screeched as Lucy cut it with her swords and Natsu as he hurtled towards it.

" **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist**!"

Natsu's fist made contact with the demon's face. It screeched again and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Without missing a beat, Lucy sprung at a second demon, however she was unaware of the two aiming attacks at her. Natsu attacked one and Cancer, thankfully, took the other. Both hit the ground hard and kicked up massive clouds of dust. Natsu fell through the air towards the demon he knocked down, which was looking dazed.

As he fell, he extended his leg and ignited his foot. " **Fire Dragon's Talon**!"

The demon exploded into a cloud of smoke, dust, and light as Natsu plowed through its chest.

"Natsu! Look out!" Lucy warned from above.

Suddenly, Natsu was struck with a hard blow from the left. He was picked up off the ground and sent flying into the wall on the other side of the cavern. Celestite clusters shattered under him, the thorn-like shards wedging themselves between his scales. Thankfully, that was the worst of the damage.

Natsu pulled himself out of the whole in the wall that he had made and came face to face with the demon that put him there in the first place. It suddenly shrieked as a pair of blades cleaved its head into four equal pieces before it disappeared. Lucy fell down behind it, landing on a spire of Celestite jutting out of the wall.

She grinned at him. "You okay?"

Natsu chuckled. "Never better!"

Cancer landed gracefully on another outcropping of Celestite just above Lucy. His sunglasses were cracked and his clothes were torn, but he was otherwise alright.

"In coming, ebi," he warned.

The two remaining demons were encased in a brilliant shell of light and throwing off massive magical pressure . So much that wind was being kicked up around the cavern. They were muttering a spell under their breath as glittering blue runes materialized around them.

"We need to move!" Natsu exclaimed.

The half-Fire dragon leapt from his perch and down to Lucy. In one swift motion, he grabbed her around her waist and propelled them both off the outcrop and hopefully out of the line of fire, Cancer not far behind.

A wave of heat and pure magical energy blasted Natsu's back. None of the attack actually hit him or Lucy, but he was close enough to feel the sheer power of the attack. The cave shuttered, clumps of Celestite raining from the ceiling and falling off the walls.

Natsu's feet hit the ground hard, but when they did, he didn't stop moving and immediately dove into the nearest tunnel for cover with Lucy.

When the rain of debris stopped, the demons looked more worn than before. The glow in their eyes had dimmed and the solidity of their bodies was less so to the point that they looked more like clouds of condensed smoke.

"They're...exhausted?" Lucy realized, "That spell they just did must have taken a lot out of them."

"Well then let's finish them off!" Natsu declared, leaning forwards.

However, Lucy's arm rose to block him. "Wait," she ordered, "Look."

Natsu was about to ask what Lucy was talking about as he looked at the demons that had tried to obliterate them just moments earlier, but he soon saw what she was talking about. The demons were holding each other's hands. As if they were friends.

When Natsu heard the word "demon", the first thing that came to his mind was the demons of Tartaros. Ruthless killers, driven by a thirst for power and blood, unremorseful as they crushed innocent lives beneath their feet. But these two demons in front of him now contradicted that. In this moment, they seemed almost tender. Defeated and too tired to fight back. Seeing this brought a question to his mind.

Were this creatures truly demons?

He didn't get a chance to find an answer as the creatures soon dissolved into specks of light. Still holding each other's hand.

Cancer and Lucy's **Stardress** had disappeared at some point during this as well, but Lucy looked just as distraught as Natsu felt.

"Those weren't demons," he whispered, his voice croaking slightly, "No demon would show emotion like that even in its last moments!"

Alkali and Jason came out into the center of the room, visibly looking around, likely for him and Lucy.

"Hey, great job!" Jason shouted, pleased, "You killed all the demons!"

Natsu was suddenly overcome with rage, his earlier dislike for Jason suddenly becoming unbearable.

He charged out of the tunnel, flames licking at his elbows. "Those weren't demons, you liar!"

Natsu rose his fist to punch Jason in the face, only for Alkali to get between them, his pen in hand.

Alkali slashed out a symbol in glowing purple energy before uttering the command. " **Symbols Magic:** **Sleep** ,"

And Natsu's vision suddenly went dark as he slipped into unconsciousness.

...

Lucy's POV:

...

It felt like a cloud had lifted in her mind. Like there was fog that hid something painfully obvious from her sight that had just now cleared as Natsu fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Natsu!" she cried.

She rushed towards him only to be stopped by a hand gripping her arm tightly. Lucy whipped around to see Jason was the one holding her back, a sweet smile on his face that Lucy once saw warmth in but now only looked fake and ice cold.

"Don't worry about him, Lucy," he assured in a sickly sweet tone, "He's just sleeping."

Before Lucy could make any kind of retort, Jason reached down and grabbed both her key pouch and whip and tore them off her belt.

"Hey!" she exclaimed, grasping for her keys, "Give those back! What's your problem!?"

Jason let go of Lucy's arm, but held her keys well out of her reach, his grin turned to a sneer.

"Aw, it looks like my **Charm** magic has lost its effect on you," he noted, "Too bad. This will complicate our plans somewhat."

Lucy paused. "Complicate your...? What plans? I thought you and Alkali we-"

"Were guild mages on a job for a client?" he finished, walking towards Alkali, "In a way yes. Alkali and I _are_ members of a guild of mages, but we aren't on a job for a client."

"Then what are you here for?" she questioned.

Jason smirked darkly, clutching her keys in his hand. "We will be taking the Natus Stellarum in the name of our guild, Utopia, to usher in a new age of peace between Celestial Spirits and humans. And you're going to help us, Lucy Heartfillia. Whether you want to, or not."

…

 **A/N: I** _ **did**_ **say we were hitting the climax. What I** _ **didn't**_ **say was that I was going to be evil and leave you all at the** _ **very**_ _**edge**_ **of the start. But dang was this long. Not Tartarus climax long, but** _ **long**_ **.**

 **Feel free to scream at me from the comments, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter and honestly a review (that consists of more that a plea for an update) just makes me want to write the next chapter even more. And also I just love to see how my work makes people react.**

 **But y'all were right not to trust Jason and Alkali! Those two were up to no good from the very beginning!**

 **Next time we get into the really exciting stuff and I just know that you all will be soaring with how much you'll love it ;) It will also be a long chapter, so don't expect the next update right away because we will be reaching the true climax and the best part in my opinion.**

 **If you want to ask me anything, go to my Tumblr and put something in my Inbox. I'll be more likely to answer quickly from there since I'm on Tumblr more frequently than FFN. My URL is the same as my Pen Name: purewriting. I also will be putting up some exclusive info about the story on my Tumblr since I might not be able to fit it here.**

 **Please leave a review and Valette :)**


	45. Chapter 45

**A/N: Salvette. Here comes the climax everyone. And y'all will LOVE this chapter for what I have planned *rubs hands together*.**

 **Reviews** **:**

 **PotatoGirl14** **: Thank you!**

 **peacerockgirl123** **: Oh you'll love this chapter then. But I really felt like leaving everyone on an aggravating cliffhanger (like usual).**

 **Terra of Life** **: No, Jason doesn't have fire magic XD Just Charm magic, but it works exactly like Bora's charm ring, though Jason is pretty discreet in using it.**

 **SSTrans** **: Omg thank you so much. I was a little worried about the fight scene mostly since it was from Natsu's POV, it would focus more on what Natsu was doing rather than what Lucy was up to. I tried to weave in some bits with Lucy because I adore her and her powers are awesome. I did love writing the fishing scene because it was adorable, so I'm glad that you liked it. But don't worry, Natsu will get AMPLE chance to land MULTIPLE hits on Jason and Alkali.**

 **WolfMistwood** **: Oh snap indeed.**

 **CheetahMage444** **: Thank you :)**

 **Kaggy-Higgs88** **: MWHAHAHA! Don't worry, Natsu** _ **will**_ **get a chance to beat up Jason and Alkali. He's not gonna be unconscious the whole time.**

 **MissLadyVampire** **: omg this is so nice. I took the liberty to make Lucy twice as badass in this story as she is in canon because I can (which is the answer to a lot of things that happen in this story) and I'm glad it's so well received. I got your PM and I'm sorry I didn't respond (I'm an awkward gremlin) but just omg. It's so nice. I love hearing that my writing makes people feel stuff and that you like this story :) And don't worry too much about the soulmate thing. It's coming** _ **very**_ **soon.**

 **Enjoy :)**

…

Lucy's POV:

…

Lucy began to work out a plan the moment Jason and Alkali began to march her down the tunnels. They've ordered her to lead them to the Natus Stellarum at at present, she didn't have much of a choice.

She was mad, mostly at herself for falling for an obvious **Charm** spell, but she wasn't going to allow that anger to cloud her judgement. This was a precarious situation after all. Lucy had little doubt that Jason and Alkali would kill Natsu if they thought even for a moment that it would benefit them.

And in Natsu's current state, he couldn't defend himself.

Alkali was carrying Natsu over his shoulder like a sack of flour. It's been about five minutes and the half-Fire Dragon was still out cold.

What could she do to get Natsu to safety? Jason had her keys and her weapon. Using **Urano Metria** was out of the question. She couldn't control the power output well and since they have entered more narrow passages, Lucy would more than likely bring the whole cave system crashing down on their heads. Hand-to-hand wouldn't be smart. Sure, Lucy could fight without magic or a weapon if she wanted, but she doubted that she would be a match for Jason and Alkali. And Natsu would likely be dead before she could get to him.

"What are you thinking about, Lucy?" Jason asked, slyly, breaking through her thoughts, "You've been very quiet."

Lucy glares at him but doesn't answer. Jason sighs and picks up his walking pace so that he's just behind her.

"How close are we to our goal?" he asks.

"Close," Lucy answers curtly, "When we get there, you'll release Natsu?"

Jason chuckles darkly. "Depends on how well you cooperate, Lucy." Lucy feels him grab a lock of her hair and he pulls it sharply, sending a bolt of pain through her head, "And you're not in the position to make bargains anyway." he hisses in her ear.

He lets go of Lucy's hair, but doesn't fall back. Lucy can hear her keys jingling against his hip and feel the strong pull of their magic. Jason was holding her her keys hostage too. She needs to get them back as well and doing so at the moment is her best bet to escape. If she could get just one key, she could stand a chance. But Jason kept his hand close to her keys and Lucy can feel his eyes burn into her.

There's no way she could get her keys back with him so alert. Lucy needs to distract him long enough for her to make a grab.

And maybe she'll get her chance very soon.

Before them is a massive chamber that looked to Lucy like the inside of a crystal ball. The walls are smooth and rounded, unlike the rest of the caverns which have clusters of Celestite jutting from the walls. The room itself is empty except for something massive sitting on a Celestite island in the dead center of the room that was cut off from everything but a small, rickety path that leads to where Lucy is standing. Lucy isn't sure what else to call it. It's unlike anything she's ever laid eyes on.

On that island is a construct made of what looks like molten gold. The gold is in constant motion, folding over and over itself like rolling waves. The gold is surrounded by a cage of swirling multi-colored light that reminds Lucy of a nebula. Points of light emanate from the ever-moving gold like stars, though they quickly disappear and reappear as the gold rolls and folds. And around all this spin seven large spires of Celestite, suspended in mid-air and glowing from within with an ethereal light. If Lucy squinted enough, she could even see tiny silver runes etched into the crystal. It was beautiful. But despite it's beauty, it was its aura of the thing that really takes her breath away. Even from this distance, Lucy could feel an overwhelmingly strong Celestial energy.

"It's...beautiful," she breathed, echoing her thoughts.

"This is it," Jason said, "This is the Natus Stellarum."

"It's bigger than I thought it would be," Alkali commented.

Suddenly, the room began to rumble. No rocks fell from the ceiling, but the tremors were strong enough to almost knock Lucy off her feet. She glanced down at the bottom of the chamber that was previously shrouded in darkness, Lucy can see something massive moving down there. Soon enough, a deafening roar echoes through the room and a head the size of a house rises from the abyss. That head is followed by a long body that coils through the chamber.

This creature was a dragon with scales black as the night sky and embellished with the colors of a nebula and small points of light that seem to constantly shift. Golden horns sweep from the dragon's head and blank white eyes glare down at them.

A huge scaly, clawed hand comes up and grabs the Celestite path, not breaking it, but effectively blocking it.

" **What do you humans think you are doing**?" the dragon demands, his voice booming around the chamber, " **Why do you seek this accursed object, the Natus Stellarum**?"

"'Accursed'?" Lucy echoes back, "Why is it accur-"

Jason interrupted her. "Out of our way, beast. We won't be deterred by you and your words."

Lucy could see the dragon's brow furrow in annoyance before turning to look at Natsu, then to Lucy.

He lowered his head to Lucy. " **And why have you come, young Celestial**?" he asked, " **Do you not realize what this accursed object will do to you**?"

Lucy looked up at the dragon in confusion, but Jason quickly got impatient.

"Stop wasting our time," Jason ordered, "Lucy. Destroy this road block!"

A low rumble rose from the dragon's throat. " **Ah, I see now. These two are black-hearted. They hold your friend hostage** ," the dragon blinked and scowled, " **No.** _ **Friends**_ **. He holds your keys as well. I always knew humans were capable of great atrocities, but never something as horrible as this.** "

"Do it Lucy," Alkali said, his voice harsh like stone, "Use your magic."

Lucy looked up to the dragon. She was scared and confused. Her friends were in danger and apparently, so was she and she didn't know what to do. But she felt that this dragon, this ancient dragon, could help.

He seemed to understand her silent plea and his eyes went from white to molten gold. Several of the small points of light that swirled about his long body lifted off and swirled above the heads of Jason and Alkali.

Both men tensed and looked up to the lights as they circled menacingly over their heads. As they did so, Jason let his hand fall away from Lucy's keys.

Seeing her window, she lunged for them.

Jason shouted, looking down at Lucy as her hand closed around her key pouch. He pushed her roughly back, but she managed to take a key with her as she stumbled back.

A gold key with a lion carved into the top.

Lucy extended the key.

" **Open! Gate of the Lion: Loke**!"

A flash of light and Loke was standing next to her. He blinked his eyes a couple of times like he himself was being aroused from a dream. He glanced behind him at the massive dragon.

"Draco?" Loke asked, surprised, "What are you doing here?"

" **My duty. While it's good to see you, old friend, there are more pressing matters to attend to** ," the dragon, Draco, said.

Loke turned to Jason and Alkali, who were still watching the points of light circling above their heads cautiously, but looked enraged.

"Yes. Yes there are," Loke agreed, his voice dripping of acid, "I'm sorry, Lucy, for falling under the effects of the **Charm** magic. It seems our bond is stronger than I thought."

"It's not your fault Loke," Lucy assured, "But they're holding Natsu hostage and he's knocked out."

" **And the brown haired human holds the rest of her keys hostage as well** ," Draco added, " **There isn't much I can do, I'm afraid, but I will do as much as I can to aid you**."

At that moment, the points of light Draco had called forth stopped spinning and bolted towards Jason and Alkali like tiny comets. Loke burst forward, fists aglow with brilliant light.

Loke reached Jason in the blink of an eye and nailed him hard in the gut, sending him flying into Alkali. Alkali stumbled, but stayed upright while maintaining a grip on Natsu, who was still unconscious and slung over his shoulder.

Loke reared to strike again, but Jason whipped out something gold that Lucy couldn't see and held it in front of him like a crucifix. Loke immediately froze.

Dread filled Lucy's heart. "Loke…? What's wrong?"

"Call back your spirit, Lucy." Jason ordered, "Or I'll snap this key in half."

Lucy stepped closer to get a better look at the gold object in Jason's hand. Her heart dropped to the floor when she saw a familiar blue symbol.

In his hand was Aquarius's key.

The key that was still cracked.

The key that could shatter into a million pieces if Lucy used it and could be broken simply by physical force. She had kept it wrapped in cloth in her key pouch for safe keeping, but apparently it wasn't safe enough.

Loke was trembling. Lucy could see in his eyes that he wanted to ram his fist into Jason's face as hard as he could, but he was holding himself back for Aquarius's sake.

Jason lifted his thumb and lightly pressed it just above the point where the crack was deepest. The crack spread just a little and Lucy's heart stopped.

"Stop!" Lucy shouted, her voice breaking, "Stop, please! Don't break Aquarius's key!"

Jason's lips curled in some unholy fusion of a smirk and a snarl. "Then call back your spirit and give me his key."

"That won't work," Loke growled through clenched teeth, "I'll just come back on my own power. Taking my key from Lucy won't solve a thing."

Jason pressed his thumb on the key. The crack spread just a little more and Loke flinched.

"Oh, I think it will," Jason retorted, "Because need I remind you that your friend's key isn't the only thing at stake here."

Jason nodded his head towards Alkali, who now held a dagger of purple energy against Natsu's throat.

"And I'm sure that he won't come back if we slit his throat,"

" **Stop this madness!** " Draco bellowed, " **You understand not the magnitude of what you seek! The Natus Stellarum can not be used under any circumstance!** "

Jason laughed coldly. "We'll be the judges of that," he looked back at Lucy, that icy smile still on his face, "Now I won't ask nicely again, Lucy. Call back your spirit."

Loke's eyes met Lucy's. There was desperation in them. Loke was practically begging her not to send him back. And Lucy didn't want to. But Natsu's life and Aquarius's key were in Jason's hands.

As much as Lucy loathed it, he held all the cards.

"I'm sorry, Loke," she said, her voice so quiet even she barely heard it.

But Loke did. His posture went rigid like he was just struck by lightning.

Loke turned to her, eyes wide with shock and panic. "Lucy, no! Don't! You can't fight them alone!"

She gave him a sad smile. "I'm sorry Loke," she said again, "I know you're just trying to do your job, but I don't have a choice."

Before Loke had a chance to argue further, Lucy forced his gate closed and he disappeared in a wash of gold light. She kept her eyes fixed on the spot where Loke once stood as Jason stood up.

"Good. Good girl, now give me the key," he coaxed, his tone like he was talking to a dog.

Lucy kept Loke's key clutched in her fist.

This small rebellion enraged Jason.

"Give me the key!" he shouted, forcefully grabbing her wrist.

A narrow bolt of energy streaked between them, striking Jason's hand. As it did, Lucy felt a wave of heat wash over her.

Jason cried out in pain and released Lucy's wrist and she stumbled back. Away from him. As she did, her eyes met Alkali's. He still held a magical dagger to Natsu's throat.

Jason clutched his wrist, a circular burn smoking on his hand.

The look in his eyes was murderous.

"You damn dragon!" he yelled in rage.

" **That's exactly what I am** ," Draco said calmly, " **Damned. I let lofty dreams of walking among the stars obscure my better judgement and it cost me dearly. Do you wish to condemn yourself to the same fate?** "

Draco's dreary words echoed around the chamber as Jason stared up at him, rage still scrawled plainly on his face. That rage quickly melted into a wicked grin that broke into hideous, dark laughter,

"You old fool!" Jason cried, still laughing, "You haven't a clue what our plans are! We have no illusions of immortality or 'walking among the stars'!"

"Then what _do_ you want?" Lucy asked tentatively.

Jason stopped laughing and grinned at her. "Nothing you will live to see." his eyes flickered to Draco, "Neither of you."

A blast of purple magic roared from behind him, whizzing over Lucy's head. She whipped around to Draco just in time to see the blast tear a huge hole in Draco's side. The massive dragon roared in pain, his voice echoing through the chamber for a too-long second and then there was silence.

Until another blast that tore a second massive hole in Draco's other side.

He didn't cry out this time as the blast ripped through his body like wet paper. The gold light flickered out of his eyes and whatever pinpoints of light he had summoned forth promptly blinked out as the massive dragon spirit let out a long, pained groan and began to sink down so that his huge head rested on the outcropping.

"Draco!" Lucy cried, rushing to the spirit's side.

She reached out to him, but her hand passed through him like mist. He was already fading away.

Draco's body began to steadily break up into small spheres of celestial light the same way all Celestial Spirits do when their bodies take on too much damage to be sustained in the human plane.

But Draco didn't belong on the Celestial Plane any more than he belongs to the human one. Sure, his body had been converted to that of a Celestial Spirit's and he had obtained powers that were Celestial in nature, but he didn't read to Lucy as a Celestial Spirit would.

His energy was different.

Draco wasn't a Celestial Spirit.

And unlike other Celestial Spirits, Draco wasn't going to go back to the Spirit World.

He was going to disappear forever.

He was going to die.

"No, no, no. Please no," Lucy whispered, tears dripping down her face, "Don't disappear. _Please._ "

He let out a low rumble. " **I'm sorry...but...I ca** n't." he said, " **My** ti **me i** s... **up**. My **lif** e...e **nds** he **re. I'm** sor **ry I...cou** ld **n't d** o mor **e to** h **elp.** "

Lucy frantically tried to latch onto Draco's energy with her own. She had no idea what she was doing, but she was reaching out to him anyway, trying _desperately_ to save him. But whatever she managed to grasp slipped through her fingers as easily as his form did.

"No, no, I can save you," Lucy croaked, "Just hold on, please!"

It was similar. Too similar. Too similar to _that_ day. The day the light in Lucy's life went out and only cold, isolating darkness took its place.

The day her mother died.

...

 _Mommy hasn't been feeling well lately. She's been pale and weak. She sits in a chair while Lucy plays with her dolls in the garden instead of playing with her like she always does. Mommy doesn't leave the estate anymore, she goes to bed earlier, and she gets tired easily._

 _She fainted today. On her way to Lucy's room._

 _Lucy hasn't left her side since she found out. Mommy was in grave health._

" _It doesn't look good," one of the nurses whispers to another._

" _There isn't...really anything we...we can do. I don't think she's going to make it through the day." the other whispers back._

 _They think Lucy can't hear them from mommy's bedside, but she can. Lucy holds mommy's hand. She's asleep, but her face looks like a wax candle. Mommy isn't supposed to look like that. Mommy is supposed to be vibrant and full of life with rosy cheeks like Lucy's._

 _Lucy may be a little girl, but she knows what this means. What the nurse's words mean._

 _It means her mommy is going to die soon and there's nothing anyone can do to save her._

 _Lucy stays by her side. Father is busy. Word probably hasn't reached him yet that mommy is near death. She wants to talk to mommy, but she doesn't know what words to say or even if mommy can hear them._

 _So Lucy sits in silence by mommy's side, holding her hand._

 _Until there suddenly isn't a hand to hold anymore._

 _Mommy begins to glow softly, like a Spirit would. Lucy's tiny hands falls right through mommy's to the plush comforter like she wasn't even there anymore._

 _Lucy isn't sure how she knew, but she knew this was it._

 _Her mother was dying._

" _MOMMY!" Lucy cries, "NO! NO PLEASE DON'T DIE! PLEASE! MOMMY!"_

 _She quickly dissolves into hysterics. The nurses, who had been silently watching over mommy and Lucy up until now, grabbed her and hauled her quickly out of the room and forcing Lucy to turn her head away._

" _Don't look darling," they'd whisper, "Don't look."_

 _The doors close behind them as they hurry out before Lucy could even decide whether or not to obey._

 _She sobs uncontrollably into the nurse's shoulder as they spirit her away from her mother._

 _They had been right. Mommy didn't make it through the day._

 _But there wasn't a body to bury after mommy was pronounced dead._

…

Lucy was reduced to that same state that she was when her mother disappeared from her life.

She was crying and she couldn't stop.

Time seemed to lose its hold and seconds felt like minutes and minutes like hours as Draco slowly dissolved. One by one, the points of light in his scales were going out. The brightest ones first until only a handful of dim lights remained that were slowly were blinking out as well. The color leaked from his scales, leaving only inky black and the gold of his horns was flaking away like old paint.

All of it dissolved into points of golden light that floated to the ceiling before disappearing from view.

And all Lucy could do was watch as Draco became more and more transparent.

It was strange how much she cared for a spirit she just met. But Lucy is sure that her care for the spirit is rooted in her love of all spirits. Celestial Spirits were her only friends as a child. She loved all of them, whether or not she knew them personally. And it ate at her to see one dying right in front of her. Not just disappearing back to the Spirit World to heal from wounds and recover lost strength, but plainly disappearing into the nether, never to be seen again.

And Draco was so calm about it as the whole chamber slowly filled with the golden points of light that were once his body.

His eyes have already gone glassy, but came back into focus just enough to look at Lucy.

" **Do** n't be sa **d**. It's **al** righ **t**." he assured her.

Lucy shook her head. She reached out once again with her magic, but only grasped fleeting wisps that easily slipped away from her.

"St **o** p w **ast** ing yo **ur** mag **ic**...on **an** o **l** d **fo** ol," he ordered, though his voice was weak and quiet, " **Le** t me g **o**."

Lucy shook her head again, more violently this time.

"I can't let this happen!" she hiccuped, "I have to do something!"

Draco rumbled quietly. "Ther **e's** not **hin** g...to d **o**. **I ma** de...a **gra** ve mista **ke...l** ong a **go**." his lip curled in a wince as a larger chunk of him broke off and disappeared in a gentle pulse of gold light, "A **nd** now...I' **m p** aying the **pr** ice."

Before Lucy could speak, visions that didn't belong to her filled her head.

…

 _Wind rushed past his face as he flew through the sky above a sea of fluffy white clouds. The feeling was exhilarating as the cold wind beat against his scaley face._

 _He dove through the clouds and came face to face with another dragon. The scales covering her large, muscular body were the purest white that put even the freshest snow to shame with a mane of stars and feathery wings that could block out the sun and shone like the moon._

 _She looked at him with beautiful magenta eyes as she beat her wings again and blew past him. Up ahead was a mountain range and she beat him to it by leaps and bounds._

" _Stella!" Draco exclaimed, as she circled the mountain top and landed, "How did you do that!? You beat me again!"_

 _She threw back her head and let out a laugh. "I don't know Drac-Drac, maybe you're just that slow?"_

 _Draco snorted as he came to meet her, coiling his long, serpentine body around the mountain top next to her's._

" _I suppose I should have learned by now that I can't beat a Celestial Dragon at a flight race,"_

" _But you didn't," Stella teased._

" _And I doubt I ever will," he grinned back, leaning forward to nuzzle her._

 _A light trill, like tiny silver bells, rose in her throat as she nuzzled him back. "I do enjoy our little races."_

" _I do too, my shining star. Even if I do lose every time."_

 _Stella smiled, her eyes sparkling merrily. "I hope we can stay this happy forever."_

 _Draco smiled back. "Me too."_

…

" _Are you sure this will work, Stella?" Draco asked, tentatively._

" _I'm sure," Stella assured him, "You want to become a Celestial as well, don't you?"_

 _Draco followed her as she walked forward. "I do! More than anything, but how do we know this won't hurt you? Or worse…"_

 _Stella stopped and turned to face him. Her magenta eyes met his bright green ones._

" _Draco, this is the only way we can be together forever," she whispered, "I'm a Celestial being and you are mortal. I will still live long after your bones have turned to dust. If you and I are to live together forever, then this must be done. I have faith that this will work."_

 _Draco leaned in, resting his head against her's. "I just don't want to risk losing you, Stella. The whole reason we're doing this is so we can be together."_

" _I know Drac-Drac. I know. But the Natus Stellarum is a Celestial object, I doubt it will do any lasting damage to me."_

" _You're sure?"_

" _Absolutely."_

 _With a surge of confidence and warmth, Draco followed Stella to the base of the Natus Stellarum. It was one of the most beautiful things Draco has ever laid eyes on and even from a distance, he could feel the overwhelming Celestial Force rolling off it in waves._

" _The Natus Stellarum," Stella said, grinning down at the magical object, "A fount of Celestial Force. And a chance for a mortal to become a Celestial."_

 _Stella rose a clawed hand. "Are you ready Drac-Drac?"_

 _Draco rose his own. "Always, my shining star."_

 _Both dragons pushed their hands into the ever-moving sphere of gold. It was a pleasant feeling at first. Warm and comforting, just like Stella. The feeling of her Celestial Force, Draco presumed._

 _Then it all suddenly went wrong._

 _Stella screamed first, then Draco soon followed as Celestial Force violently surged into him, filling every corner of his being with the light of the stars. The pain was almost blinding. It burned his very soul as more Celestial Force poured into him._

 _But as he grew brighter, filled with Celestial Force, Stella grew dimmer._

 _And dimmer._

 _And dimmer still._

 _This wasn't right._ _ **This wasn't right. Something was wrong**_ _._

 _Draco tried to pull his hand back but was met with strong dark energy that prevented him from doing so. A dark energy that had no place in such a holy object._

 _Draco let out another cry as he wrenched his hand out of the Natus Stellarum. It seethed and burned more so than the rest of his body, but he ignored it as Stella's screams filled his earholes._

 _Without hesitation, he grabbed hold of her under her arms and pulled. Unlike with him, the Natus Stellarum was actively trying to consume Stella. It was trying to draw the Celestial Dragon into itself as it drained her dry of her Celestial Force. When Draco grabbed hold of Stella, the same dark energy from before tried to prevent him from pulling her out but his draconic strength was too much for the dark energy's hold and he pulled Stella out._

 _But the damage had been done._

 _While Draco was buzzing with Celestial Force from horn tip to tail tip, Stella had been drained almost completely._

 _Her beautiful snow white scales were dull and her breathing was weak. Draco's heart nearly stopped when her body began to break up into spheres of golden light._

 _He has seen her disappear to the Celestial Spirit World before after a particularly nasty battle, but this was different. She wasn't just disappearing to the Celestial Spirit World, Stella was plainly disappearing._

 _And Draco could only watch._

 _Her form suddenly became transparent and intangible. Stella slipped right through Draco's arms and fell to the cold floor._

" _ **NO! Stella!? STELLA!**_ " _Draco cried out, his voice now sounding not like his own, "_ _ **What happened?**_ "

 _She groaned weakly. "Dark...magic...a curse...I didn't...know…."_

" _ **How do I help you, Stella? Please tell me! I don't-I don't want to lose you**_ …" _he pleased, voice breaking._

" _I'm...sorry Drac...there's nothing...you can do…" Stella whispered weakly, "The curse...it...drained all...my Force….and I can't...seem to gather...more."_

 _A knot of dread formed in his stomach. "_ _ **No...no please**_ _."_

 _Stella smiled. But it wasn't full of joy. It was full of bitter regret. "I'm sorry….I was wrong….I'm sorry we...have to...part like this."_

 _Tears fell from Draco's eyes, blurring his vision against his wishes. "_ _ **I love you, my shining star**_ _."_

 _A noise escaped Stella's lips, something between a sob and a laugh. "I...love you...too."_

 _With those final, barely audible words, Stella soon vanished completely. Leaving only a trail of gold light as the only sign she was ever there at all_.

…

Lucy blinked and suddenly she was back in reality with more tears in her eyes than before.

There was no Stella, but there was a different dying dragon before her.

Tears ran down her face anew as she understood what she just saw.

"Draco...I'm so sorry," Lucy whispered, "Stella...she…"

" **A** h, you...sa **w** that?" Draco asked, surprised, "Mu **st**...be tha **t** l **in** k...you'v **e be** en trying...to make."

"Stella...she died. You were in love," she murmured, "You just wanted to be together without worrying one would have to live without the other."

" **I** t was...no **t** m **ea** nt...to **be** I'm afra **id** ," he said closing his eyes, " **A** t least...Stell **a an** d I will **fina** lly be **tog** ether."

Draco opened his eyes again, though only half-way. "Promis **e** me...one thin **g** , youn **g C** elestial." he took in a shaky breath, "Do **n'** t...le **t** your s **t** ory... **e** nd like...our **s**."

Lucy paused briefly, puzzling out his words. But she understood.

"I promise," Lucy whispered.

Draco smiled weakly at her and his eyes closed completely. He didn't speak again and a few seconds later, he had completely dissolved into golden light, just like Stella did so many, many centuries ago.

In a few moments, all trace of the cursed dragon had vanished from the cave.

Behind her, Jason snorted. "Good riddance."

Lucy heard footsteps approaching her but she was too numb to react before Jason had already wrenched Loke's key out of her hand. She had forgotten that she had been clutching it.

"Now let's get this over with," he said, "Get up."

When Lucy didn't comply, Jason took her arm and dragged her up before pushing her towards the path to the Natus Stellarum.

The memory of the moment where Stella's very life force was stripped from her replayed in Lucy's mind. It was done by that very object.

Gradually, Lucy's grief induced numbness faded. Draco was right, she was still in danger and now she knew what kind.

But what could she do?

Natsu was still being held prisoner and he couldn't defend himself as he was.

But he wouldn't stay that way forever. Lucy could buy time for Natsu to sleep off Alkali's spell. But what if Alkali just cast it again? What then?

Lucy doesn't have much time to plan. They were getting closer to the Natus Stellarum.

Desperately, Lucy glanced over the side of the path. It was a long way down, Lucy couldn't even see the bottom.

" _Don't let your story end like ours_ _ **."**_

She didn't intend for it to, but if worse comes to worse, Lucy can't let them activate the Natus Stellarum. It's a holy construct that's been corrupted with dark magic. Activating it now after so long could potentially lead to the destruction of both the Celestial Spirit World and the human world. No. It _would_ lead to the destruction of both worlds.

And if they need her to do it, if she isn't around to activate it, then their plans were moot.

"What are your plans anyway?" Lucy asked.

"Our plans?"

"Yeah. Your plans," Lucy repeated, "What do you want to accomplish so badly that you'd kill others to achieve it?"

"Peace. True peace between Celestials and humans." Alkali said.

Lucy scoffed bitterly. "Funny way of doing it."

"Sacrifices must be made for the greater good,"

"What 'greater good'?!" Lucy exclaimed, whipping around to face them, "You tricked Natsu and I into fighting Celestial Spirits, you _manipulated_ me with **Charm** magic, you're holding my friend _hostage_ , you threatened to break one of my keys, and you callously _murdered_ Draco. _Where_ is the good in any that?!"

Jason shook his head and laughed, like she was a small child who said something amusing.

"I wouldn't expect you to understand, Lucy," Jason chided, "But with the Natus Stellarum, we will achieve equilibrium with the Celestial Spirit World, uniting them as one!"

"Celestial Spirits will no longer have to live at the beck-and-call of part Celestials and mortals, such as yourself." Alkali continued, "We will be equals."

Jason pushed her suddenly, making her stumble and fall to the ground. Behind her, she felt the Natus Stellarum buzzing with Celestial Power. A convincing facade for the dark trap laying just beneath the surface.

"Now activate it," Jason ordered.

Lucy clenched her fist and glared defiantly at Jason. A massive part of her wanted to say "No. No I will _not_ activate this cursed object to fulfill your foolish goal" and spit in his face for good measure.

But the logical part of her told her not to defy them. Despite the spat earlier, nothing had changed. Jason still had her keys, Alkali still held Natsu hostage and was perfectly capable of slitting his throat at a moment's notice. There was too much at stake for Lucy to outright defy them.

Her eyes flickered to the edge. It was a long fall to the bottom.

"Let Natsu and my spirits go first," Lucy said firmly as she got to her feet.

Jason snickered. "You don't learn, do you? You have no power to make deals."

Lucy rose a brow at him. "Oh really?"

She bolted to the edge of the island before Jason even had the chance to stop her. Lucy let the heel of her left foot go over the edge to emphasize her point.

"You need me alive for your plan to work."

Jason barked out a laugh. " _That's_ your leverage? _Suicide_? You realize that if you do that, then we'll still kill your friend."

"Not if I don't take you with me," Lucy threatened, allowing Celestial Force to crackle dangerously at her fingertips, "I'm the daughter of a goddess, remember? I'm more than certain that I can pull off something that will bring you and your friend down with me."

This made Jason pause. "So if I let your friends go, you'll activate the Natus Stellarum?"

"Yes," Lucy confirmed, solemly, "But only if you give me your word."

He smirked. "Fine. I give you my word."

He snapped his fingers and Alkali shrugged Natsu off his shoulders and Jason took Lucy's key pouch and tossed it over towards Natsu. The pouch landed neatly next to the unconscious half-dragon.

"There." Jason said, "I've done my part. Now hold up your end of the bargain."

Mechanically, Lucy walked closer to the celestial construct. She dragged her feet a bit in some faint hope that a miracle will happen at the last minute.

Natsu would finally wake up or Loke would come crashing in like a knight in shining armor.

But unfortunately, no such luck.

Lucy knew that there was no way for her to know that Jason would keep his word. For all she knew, he was only going along with Lucy's demands to get her to do what he wanted and to her, that sounded like the more likely option. And she knew that if she activated the Natus Stellarum, it could very well be the end for both worlds.

But there was nothing she could do.

Lucy was out of options, out of ideas, and out of time.

She has no choice.

She rose her hand towards the Natus Stellarum.

 _Please_ , she begged, Natsu. _Please wake up. Save the day like you always do._

And Lucy pushed her hand into the molten gold and screamed.

…

Natsu's POV:

…

Consciousness returned slowly to him but Natsu could feel himself being carried and slung around like a sack of potatoes, though only faintly. When his consciousness fully began to return, the first thing Natsu heard was screaming.

Lucy's screaming.

His eyes snapped open in an instant.

He was face down against the Celestite floor with Lucy's key pouch and whip next to him.

But Lucy herself was screaming. Natsu couldn't describe that scream as anything other than terrifying because there was so much pain in it. Lucy was hurting. But what was hurting her?

Natsu pulled himself up too slowly for his liking. His mind was awake, but his body was taking its sweet time catching up.

The first thing he did was grab Lucy's keys and whip. The second thing he did, was look up. When he did, his blood ran cold.

The air was swimming with Celestial Force, the solid surroundings fading in and out, being replaced by free floating planets and nebulas. The chamber they were in was breaking apart, but gravity seemed to be confused as the rubble was falling up.

And in the center of it all was a massive construct of Celestite and molten gold. And Lucy.

The half-Celestial was shrouded in a halo of brilliant gold light, her hand submerged in the construct. It seemed to be reaching out to her, gradually pulling her into it despite her struggling. Her screams of pain reverberated through the chamber until they petered out as she fell unconscious.

Natsu's body took this as a wake up call.

"LUCY!" he screamed, scrambling to his feet.

As he charged towards his friend, he narrowly dodged a punch that had been thrown at him instinctively. Whipping his head in the direction the attack came from, Natsu came face-to-face with Jason.

Jason cursed. "Alkali!" he shouted.

The other mage came up behind Natsu, pen in hand and the tip aglow with purple light. But Natsu was not going to let them get him with the same trick twice.

Scarlet scales burst onto Natsu's skin as he scowled at his enemy. "Oh no you don't. **Fire Dragon's Roar**!"

A funnel of orange flames overtook Alkali and he flew to the edge of the crumbling platform. Then a right hook out of nowhere clocked Natsu in the jaw. His head snapped, but he recovered quickly and spun around on his heel, fist alight with angry flames.

" **Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!** "

Natsu's fist was sloppily blocked by Jason, so Natsu got him enough to knock him off kilter. Jason stumbled, clutching his burning cheek, a strange circular burn mark seared on his hand that wasn't there before.

Jason laughed. "You're too late, half-breed. We won. The Celestial Spirit World is merging with ours."

The chamber shook as the ceiling cracked and golden light flooded through them.

"And you're wretch of a girlfriend is as good as dead," he cackled.

Rage boiled in Natsu's heart and his flames burned brighter as they swirled around him on the air current. Without a moment's hesitation, Natsu unleashed a flurry of blows on Jason. The dark mage tried to keep up, but Natsu's speed quickly exceeded his and more and more of Natsu's punches connected.

With each punch that connected, Natsu gained a feeling of satisfaction. This coward tricked him and Lucy into doing his dirty work and now he had forced Lucy to do something that likely will kill her. Natsu never liked Jason in the first place, so this was only more reason for him to despise the mage.

Before long, Natsu had beaten the dark mage until he was cowering in fear of him and covered in fear with angry red burns in the likeness of Natsu's fists all over his face and body.

"I'll make you eat those words, you pig!" Natsu growled, "No one talks about Lucy like that while _I'm around_!"

Natsu let loose a torrent of flames that swallowed Jason up. When they cleared, the mage fell to the crumbling floor, unconscious and smoldering.

However, Natsu didn't get to enjoy his victory for long.

"You'll pay for that, half-breed!" Alkali cried behind him.

Natsu whipped around to face the other mage. In Alkali's hand was a massive great sword of purple energy and Alkali was coming at him fast.

Alkali swung his sword and Natsu rose his fists to counter, but he was slow.

Then a flash of gold light came between Natsu and the magic blade. The blade dissolved into nothing in the face of that Celestial light and Alkali was knocked on his back.

"Now that isn't a nice thing to call someone. Very impolite," Loke commented, his tone cold.

"Loke?!" Natsu exclaimed, "How'd you get here? Lucy didn't…"

Loke turned to face Natsu, his expression stern but angry. "Go get Lucy. We'll deal with the brute."

As Loke said that, more spirits appeared. Natsu recognized most of them as Lucy's spirits. Cancer, Taurus, Gemini, Aries, Sagittarius, Scorpio, Capricorn, Virgo, even Aquarius was there. There were a few other Celestial Spirits that Natsu didn't recognize, but they shone as brilliantly as the others.

And all of them looked pissed.

"Save Lucy," Aquarius ordered, "Loke's right. We have a bone to pick with this clod."

"He killed one of our own in cold blood and is harming someone very dear to all of us," Capricorn said, his tone grave, "That will not go unpunished."

"Go!" several spirits shouted.

Natsu didn't need telling a third time. He vaulted over Alkali's head as the mage started getting up and charged full speed to the construct that was slowly engulfing Lucy.

As he does so, the ground beneath his feet gets soft and it suddenly feels like he's running on a sponge. Planets and stars and nebulas are becoming more visible and solid with each passing minute. Getting to Lucy is strenuous, but Natsu pushes.

He's not going to lose her. Not to this.

It felt like it took too long to reach her, but when he does, he hooks his arms under her's and starts pulling. He tries not to note how uncomfortably cool her skin is, or how ashen her face has become, or how her golden hair has lost its luster, or how the previously brilliant halo of light around her was getting dangerously dim. No, he focuses on pulling his dearest friend out of the thing that's sucking out her life force.

But it doesn't want to let go.

When Natsu starts pulling, he's met by a dark energy that is disgustingly familiar to him. It's evil, vengeful, and full of malice and it tries to keep Lucy inside it. For a brief moment, Natsu feels like he's fighting against Mard Geer again.

The construct seems to consume Lucy faster and Natsu is quickly losing ground. His grip on her is slowly slipping and he can't seem to regain it.

 _No, no, NO!_ He shouts in his mind, _I'm not losing her!_

A familiar power suddenly surges in him as strength bursts into him. He regains his traction and engages in a tug-of-war with the dark curse that tries to keep Lucy inside it.

 **Dragon Force.**

But despite using his ultimate power, it still isn't enough. Natsu might not be losing ground anymore, but he wasn't gaining it either. Lucy was still in that thing and her life was getting dimmer by the second.

Suddenly, there was a light weight on his left shoulder that was quickly followed by a surge of new strength.

 _"Allow me to aid you,"_ A new, but soothing voice said from next to him.

A new scent soon flooded Natsu's nose as a newer, unfamiliar strength washed over him. A new, but vaguely familiar scent. This new person smelled like Lucy.

Natsu looked to his left, where the voice had come from, and to his shock, a lady with golden hair dressed in silver and white was standing next to him with a hand on his shoulder. She was shrouded in a halo of golden light that gave her a heavenly aspect and looking in her face, Natsu could swear up and down that this woman was the spitting image of Lucy.

She gave him a faint smile. " _Please, Natsu. Save my daughter."_

Natsu nodded, now over his initial shock and started pulling again. This time, he was actually making progress. The gold that had engulfed Lucy up to her torso pulled away little by little like the tentacles of an octopus until it fell away all together. Now that Natsu wasn't pulling against a virtually immovable force, he lost his balance and fell over with Lucy in his arms.

Now that the cursed object no longer had ahold of her, the paper thin halo of light disappeared entirely and Lucy suddenly became frighteningly cool.

 _"She's still alive,"_ the lady said, almost sighing in relief herself, _"Thank you."_

"Who are you?" Natsu asked.

The lady smiled softly, almost sadly. _"I think you already know who I am."_

The room shook as something meaty hit the ground hard. Looking to his right, Natsu saw Loke and the other spirits standing over a defeated and heavily beaten Alkali. The enemy mage had many painful looking bruises on him and maybe a black eye and a few missing teeth as he now laid in a shallow crater. There were also a few arrows sticking out of him and grains of sand clinging to his hair.

The rest of the spirits smiled smugly amongst themselves.

 _"Leo, can I ask a small favor of you and the other Zodiacs?"_ the lady asked.

Loke's head snapped up to meet the lady's gaze, as did the rest of the spirits, and their eyes widened. "Lady Layla!? What are you doing here?" Loke exclaimed.

 _"The Natus Stellarum has weakened the barrier between the Celestial World and the Human World enough for me to manifest some aspect of myself,"_ she explained, _"But that isn't the issue. I need you all to help me destroy this cursed object before it destroys both this world and ours."_

Natsu bolted up, still cradling Lucy in his arms. "What!? This thing's gonna destroy both our worlds!?"

Layla nodded sadly. _"I'm afraid so. I will need your help as well, Natsu. It will take much power to destroy the Natus Stellarum."_

He scoffed. "Well, breaking stuff has always been my strong suit."

Natsu gently laid Lucy down and stood next to Layla. Next to Lucy's mother and the Zodiac Spirits. The Zodiac Spirits and Layla radiated Celestial magic while Natsu let his own magic swell, still on the high of his **Dragon Force**.

The fourteen of them released their power in tandem in a torrent of pure power. When the thick blast of Celestial power and Dragon's flames met the Natus Stellarum, it held firm, but cracks began to form in its surface.

"Keep going!" Virgo exclaimed, "It's breaking!"

So Natsu dug deeper than he had before. He could feel his **Dragon Force** gradually fading, but despite that he still dug deeper. None of the spirits said it aloud, but he was sure they did the same.

Finally, the Natus Stellarum shattered with a resounding crack like the sound of windchimes breaking. A hellish screech also emerged over that sound as a web of darkness lifted off the broken pieces and dissipated with it.

The surroundings stilled gradually. The planets, stars, and nebulas that had bled over from the Celestial Spirit World faded like morning mist and even the forms of the spirits were becoming transparent.

But everyone of the looked as relieved as Natsu felt.

"It's over," Aries sighed in relief, "It's been destroyed."

"Looks like you're all heading back now," Natsu noted, his scales sinking back below his skin.

"We used up a lot of our Celestial Force destroying the Natus Stellarum," Sagittarius explained, "With it gone now, there's not enough Celestial Force in this area for us to remain here."

"We'll be fine," Loke assured, "Just look after Lucy, okay?"

Natsu grinned. "Of course."

Layla smiled back. _"I'm glad to know that Lucy has such a good friend. And many others I'm sure."_

Natsu snorted. "Hard not to like her."

 _"Thank you again, so much,"_ she said, " _Stay safe in the future and look out her, will you not?"_

"I'm pretty sure she looks out for me just as much," he laughed.

" _Good_ ," she smiled, _"I'm glad."_

With those parting words, Layla, the Celestial Goddess herself, disappeared completely. The rest of the spirits offered parting words of their own before disappearing not soon after. And Natsu was alone with three unconscious people and an almost crushing exhaustion of his own as his **Dragon Force** finally disappeared as well.

All seemed well and good until the floor beneath his feet suddenly shook violently. A deep fissure spread from one end of the island to the other and the part Natsu and Lucy were on suddenly broke off, unable to hold itself together.

Natsu and Lucy, who was still unconscious, were sent into a free fall towards the bottom of the chamber.

Lucy had already fallen a considerable distance farther than Natsu already, probably because she had been closer to the edge than he was. Alarm clawed at his throat as he dove for Lucy. The fall was far, so hitting solid rock would hurt a lot. Natsu doubted it would kill him because of his draconic heritage. Dragons were naturally tough and he could manifest his scales to take the brunt of the impact. But Lucy didn't have that luxury and she was unconscious to boot.

This fall would surely kill her.

As Natsu forced himself to fell faster, the distance between him and Lucy slowly closed. But the hard bottom of the chamber was rapidly approaching as Natsu reached out desperately to grab Lucy's hand.

…

 **A/N: *drags hands down face* Ugh. Stupid chapter breaks. I was hoping we'd get to the really good stuff this chapter, but dang it just felt right stopping it here and tease you all with a cliffhanger. Next chapter should be the last for this arc before breaking into a very brief transition during that chapter. And then the last arc begins.**

 **The end is in sight everyone. THE END IS NEAR. If you know what I mean ;)**

 **Valette, until next time :)**


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